An American YYH: Japan Invasion
by Neko-Koorime
Summary: Kassie's moved to Japan, every fangirl's dream. Pity hers just keeps going wrong. Nothing normal can ensue, living with 5 boys and Sam. KuraxOC Sequel to An American YYH, you don't have to have read the first one to enjoy. Some mild 'adult themes'
1. Review the facts, you shall

I was standing here… in front of a giant house. Well, maybe it wasn't as giant as I thought it was, but to me, it was huge. I'd never been in any home that had more than one flight of stairs. This one had to have, like, 30! Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit there. But, there were a lot of levels on this thing. I could see three, and there might be a 4th hiding in the recesses of the attic. (I wasn't used to attics. We had crawl spaces, and they weren't pleasant places.)

See what I mean? Giant! Especially for me, who spent most of her last few years in a small house compared to this. Then again, what exactly should I have been expecting? I mean, come on! This place had to hold… 4…5…6… people at least! And each of them had to have separate rooms. Plus, given the nature of the occupants, there needed to be certain things. And, on top of it all, it had to look normal. It makes sense it'd have to be this big.

I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Kassandra Zelane. Weird name, huh? Meh, I'm from Florida. Everything's weird there. But where am I now, and why am I talking like a crazy person? Well, first off, I'm in Japan. Yes, you read that right. Japan. Tokyo to be exact. Why am I talking like a crazy person? Likely, it's because I am. I'm a host for a demon named Kasumi Raiyami, and well, I can't say she hasn't rubbed off on me.

_Whatever, you've always been crazy, dear._

That's probably true… in any case, that's Kasumi. You'll get to hear more from her later. She says I'm better at explaining things, so, I guess I'll keep explaining. Why am I here? That's probably another good question to ask. Well, it's hard to explain, but basically I'm here because Kasumi needs to be supervised constantly, and I don't count as supervision. For the last few months, there have been people supervising, but they couldn't stay forever. And rather than let them seal Kasumi's powers again, and possibly seal me inside permanently, I decided it'd be better to go with them. Trust me, leaving my family was the hardest thing ever. I might give Dylan, James, and Emerylis a hard time on occasion, but I love them dearly. And my parents too…

…but, the choice I made isn't without benefits. I get to live with my long time anime crush! Okay, I bet I lost you right there. That's where all this chaos started. You'll never guess who one day randomly showed up in my math class. And then moved next door. And then proceeded to whip my life around like it was a toy. The Reikai Tantei! Oh…right, not everyone knows what that means. Spirit World Detectives. All 4 of them. Kuwabara, Yusuke, Hiei, and… Excuse me while I sigh happily here…Kurama…I've had a huge crush on him since I was introduced to the series Yu Yu Hakusho a few years earlier. Yes, I was a fangirl.

_Why do you speak in past tense? _

Point taken, Kasumi. I still am I suppose. At first I thought it was just an elaborate and mean joke. Then, when I got mobbed in a park by some demon who threatened to take me to the Makai, I figured out it was no hoax. But, I didn't tell them I knew everything yet. Yeah, I was mean, and I made them explain it all to me. Curiosity I suppose would be my reason. Anyway… For some reason I can't recall right now, I had to pretend to be going out with Kurama ( 333 Not that devastating I assure you) Of course, if my mother found out I'd be grounded till the day I die! My parents have a rule. No dating till your 16. Anyway, dances were allowed (since I'd been 14) The Valentine's dance was Feb. 12, the day before my birthday… I got to go with Kura… ( 33333333) Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling so well. As it turns out, the reason why, was because Kasumi was breaking free of her bonds. My birthday, I was extremely out of character when Kura popped by. I was wearing clothes I didn't even know I had, I made sandwiches, and…worst of all..I was cleaning. At first, all was blamed on my cold, but when the room was clouded with a dark and silver veined mist, and amethyst eyes peered out, everyone figured it out.

Then life got really complicated. On top of finding out I had to share a body with a demon, I lost a bet with Kurama (don't ask) and had to go out with him. Normally, you'd be getting more hearts, but he chose to teach me how to roller skate. One thing that must be known about me. I can't do anything physically inclined right. Running? I'd rather go to the hospital. Balance beam? I'd rather jump off a cliff. Worst of all, rope climbing? Just shoot me where I stand. Anyway, it went okay (alright, great) until I fell and sprained my wrist. I have a low threshold for pain, and passed out. I woke up at home with Kurama next to me. We decided to watch whatever movie was in because neither of us wanted to move. But when the movie that was in, turned out to be an episode of Yu Yu Hakusho… Oh dear… It was not the way I'd intended to tell them. He insisted on seeing my (messy, but YYH covered and sloppily concealed) room. Luckily he put it all together himself. I was horribly embarrassed though and rushed outside. Only to almost be kidnapped again! This time, we figured out it was because of Kasumi.

Of course, it wasn't all almost getting kidnapped. Spent some time playing games with other people I knew so well, and adored. Well, back to when that last demon tried to kidnap me. Kura had said some things I didn't quite approve of, things that were embarrassing. It was all to make the demon pause, but I still couldn't believe he'd said it! The next day, when I finally woke up

_Ah, more good times when you were barely awake. _

Shush. I actually… and I still shudder as I recount this, slapped him. The others say they followed and watched, and Kuwabara and Yusuke are still laughing about it. I however stormed off. I was pinned in a corner by Ryan and his goons (Jerk… Football player at school) he said someone wanted to meet me. I ignored him and somehow managed to climb the rickety fire escape. 112 pounds manage to make it up. The nearly 200 of the next kid? Totally pulled the entire thing off. So I was safe, they couldn't get me.

Unfortunately, I was cold. And they wouldn't go away so I could figure out how to get down. I was about to just give up when the very fox I'd slapped that afternoon came and scared them off. Of course, he asked me to jump down. It was, like, 20 feet!

_10_

Whatever. I said no, and climbed up instead, going to walk down through the inside. A nice old lady opened the window. I heard Kurama climbing up the stairs after me, and knew he'd be there soon, so I didn't hesitate to drop in. Comfort, Warmth, and kind words made me feel safe. Until the lady used my name. And guess what! She wasn't a lady at all! And certainly not old. In fact, **he** was an absolutely drop dead gorgeous demon… And of course, as soon as I dropped in, the window slammed shut, locking Kurama outside. He couldn't get to me before the demon grabbed me. Though Kurama got in, I barely managed to say I'm sorry before I was whisked off to the Demon World.

In the Makai, I found out he wanted Kasumi because she could create stuff out of mists. Nothing live of course, but mist was all that was required to form objects. He made a deal, he'd free her powers, which were sealed, and she'd be free to rule beside him. Cheesy, no?

Anyway, I'm told that the others fought through the forest, including my mysterious friend Sam. No one is sure exactly what kind of demon she is. But she made two giants basically become OCD. Best not to ask. They recruited the forest demon Sen on their way through. Somehow, they got to the throne room, only to find Kasumi turned…well, turncoat. After a dramatic scene where she sends them all off to their 'torture and deaths', all is revealed. She's a double crosser!

Then the final showdown, which, I'm afraid I don't remember much of..I was too scared. As a human, I was easier to deal with than Kasumi, and Yukio (that was the demon...forgot to mention that) threatened to mark me, so I couldn't be taken away. Somehow Kurama managed to get a fireflower on him and poof! Yukio was ash…!

I don't remember much after that until they threatened to seal Kasumi's power, and possibly seal me inside. It wasn't a positive situation, but it couldn't be avoided without uprooting the boys or me. It really was more of a me thing. Reluctantly, like I said, I chose to leave my family. And so now I'm here!...In Japan. …With Koenma, Prince of the Underworld, next to me, looking pleased with himself, and a huge house in front of me.

The house…It was a pretty thing. The main color was an off white, something that blended in nicely with the rest of the neighborhood. If there was a real neighborhood anyway. The nearest house was a fair few feet away. Like, half a road. Anyway… The trim on the building was a chocolate colored. The house looked like a normal building to me anyway. Behind it sprawled a forest. Maybe it was just a park. But it was a lot of trees.

I suppose that wasn't exactly normal. As it turns out, we lived pretty far out of town. Like, you know, where if sometime, there is this weird explosion…It's not going to be quite as obvious. That's what Kurama said. But, he said it much more dignified. And, a tad more complicated like. You know. He said it his way.

I hadn't spoken since I caught sight of the house. Now… I think I managed to make noise at least. "B-Big. Big house."

My shock only seemed to encourage the ego of the bouncing brat. "Well, I will tell you it wasn't very easy to find a house plan for these requirements. And then building it in just a few days, with my modifications…"

A voice tickled my ear, soft and highly amused. "Modifications?" My heart took several jumps in my chest, and I swear I almost fainted. It took every ounce of self control I possessed to not whip around and tackle him. Some old impulses die hard. Very hard. I did however smile and lean back against him ( 33) I whisper in his ear as he'd done in mine.

"I'm sure everything will be okay..."

That smile…. I nearly melted right there. Instead I hurriedly leaned forward again, very sure that my cheeks were as red as his hair. Koenma was still talking.

"…Of course, I'm sure that by giving you some money and plenty of time in both the Spirit World and Human shopping malls, I'm sure you'll remedy the problem to your liking."

Whoa! Back up! Problem? "K-Koenma… um… what problem are we talking about?" At least the red in my cheeks could be taken as embarrassment from something entirely different now. Like, the fact that everyone was now staring at me and giving me that 'You had another blonde moment didn't you?' look.

"We haven't had time to furnish it yet, Kassie. Please, stay with me." I gave a nod or too, resolving to pay more attention in the future. At least, the near future. Koenma cleared his throat, as if to return all attention to him. "Now, if I can have Sam, Botan, Keiko, and…Kassie… please come with me. I'll show you what you girls what you have to work with."

"Hey, how come we don't get a say in the decoration?"

I laugh immediately after Yusuke speaks. "It's easier if there are the least amount of differing tastes." Which, is Kassie-speak for 'Your opinion on décor would be scary, and we don't want it.' I noticed chuckling from the direction of Hiei and Kurama and stuck my tongue out in their direction, and then scampered up onto the covered porch. Koenma opened the door and we four girls shuffled in.

"Alright, tour of the house in a moment. First, I have a very important announcement to make. I did make a small modification to the house's structure."

"And, you couldn't tell us in front of the boys?" Keiko asked. I could tell she was just as curious as Sam and I though. Botan was laughing.

"They can't use it! What's the point of telling them?"

"Precisely, Botan. Now, I've created a pocket dimension for this place. No need to thank me, it's for entirely selfish reasons I assure you."

"A wh-" I only get to start my sentence before Botan is up in my face explaining. Sometimes it's good to be blonde.

"A pocket dimension. Basically, it's a dimension that can only be accessed in this house. There are always certain requirements for creating it's entrance, and for this place, the only requirement is being female. Isn't it grand? A place where we can lock the boys away when they give us grief!"

Koenma did his throat clearing thing. "Now, Botan, You missed the entire true purpose of the pocket dimension. It's a self defense mechanism in case you girls are home alone and the boys aren't here to help you. All offenders can be locked away, regardless of gender."

"Oh… of course, Koenma sir." She stood up straight for a moment, but as soon as he continued monologuing, she turned back to us. "But, I promise you, we'll get more use out of it this way."

I giggle a little, and then focus my attention on Koenma so I don't miss anything important.

"Now, this portal is easy enough to access. All you have to do is picture that a doorway leads there. So, if you're being chased around by a Fugaki demon, all you have to do is picture the doorway you just went through leads to the pocket dimension instead. As they come through, poof! They are gone! Ah yes. In order to imagine it leading to the pocket dimension, you have to know what it looks like. For all intents and purposes, just picture a ton of hamster tunnels."

He lost me again! And I was even trying to pay attention! "Hamster…tunnels…? You mean, like, those brightly colored tubes that those poor little guys have to travel through to get places in their cages? A mess of those? Why? Is it to get them all confused because there are so many little hamsters that they can't do anything?"

Koenma sighed. "I suppose I'd better clarify. People-sized hamster tunnels, and when I say a ton, I mean they twist and turn in every direction. Now, there are only 17 exits in the dimension, but only one of them is ever unlocked. And, when the door is tried, the exit that is unlocked changes. All power usage is suspended in the tunnels, though I did leave places that dispense food and drink." I wanted to ask if it was hamster style food and drink, but he just kept talking… ( X-x ) "The exit when they finally do manage to find it, will open into the house randomly. One never knows where they'll come out. Any questions?"

It wasn't any surprise to me when Sam raised her hand. Koenma gave her a look that I couldn't interpret, and then tried to ignore it. Sam spoke anyway. "So, does it work on you? It'll work on anyone right? As long as they're in the house?" If ever Koenma looked like he didn't want to answer a question…

"Moving on. This is the kitchen." Our walking had led them to the kitchen apparently. But it looked like no kitchen I had ever seen! Tile lined the floor and went up the walls. There were no cupboards, no appliances… nothing. I could see where the white tile became white carpet. Thinking back, all the rooms had been like this. Empty. White. But the weird thing about this was…

"No plumbing." I murmur. "No electric either." Nothing was sticking out of the walls or the floor. Did Koenma spend so much time on his pocket dimension, he forgot to supply the basic necessities of modern house life? Did they have plumbing and electric in the Spirit World? I couldn't recall. It's not something I paid a ton of attention to.

However, my worries were appeased. I was getting tired of looking at the toddler, but at least he provided an important answer. "As soon as you girls plan the house and everything else, the plumbers and electricians will come through and match the systems to your needs."

Sounded like a plan, but there was a small flaw…"Um… Koenma… I have an uncle… he helps build houses… normally those systems go down before everything else. Especially before tile and and carpet…and drywall…and…yeah… they are gonna have to pull everything up to do that…"

So, why was he still smiling? "Humans would, yes. But I'm talking about importing the finest demon plumbers and electricians to do this. They'll be fine." I was about to make another point, questioning whether or not he really knew what he was talking about. Keiko elbowed me in the side, so with a whimper and a smile, I let it go.

"Now, One of the modifications I made, in addition to the pocket dimension was the addition of a basement. Not just any basement, It doubles as a portal room. We've set up a permanent room so you have time to get to school everyday."

"Won't…that be a little obvious? We just portal right to the school building? What if somebody asks to car pool?"

"You tell them no."

"What if they insist? What if they spend the night and want to car pool to school?"

"You tell them no. And I'd highly recommend not letting people have the chance to get acquainted with this building too well."

"Why?" Sam questioned. "Because it's going to get blown up every couple of days?" Maniacal giggles were unsettling.

Koenma gave her a glare. "Young miss, did I mention we found out all about you? I would keep that aura of yours in check and it shouldn't be exploding that often. Or at all. Or I think you'll find yourself returned to the life you left."

That shut Sam up. But, now I was curious. They found what kind of demon she was? Where she was from? I wanted to know….But clearly we weren't being told. I stole a glance at the stairs. "Hey, Question. Can we replace those stairs with spiral staircases? Metal ones?"

"Why?" Was the question. In response, I gave a smile.

"Because… I want them…?"

No one could have known exactly how often that statement would be heard from several different mouths before this all was over. There was a glitter in the eyes of Sam, Keiko, and Botan. And I'm positive that there was a glitter in mine, too. Actually, it might be more than a glitter. More like a lightshow.

* * *

**_Oh dear! What chaos are we in for now? It's An American YYH: Japan Invasion! And anything can happen in a house with another dimension, and design happy teenage girls with the red measuring tape, and a basically unlimited budget. What will they come up with?_**


	2. Designed

Two Days later…

The guys had all been kicked out to their respective houses. We girls? We spent days and nights in the house. The only one who had anything else to do was Keiko, and it was summer. No school. Sometimes Botan took us to the Spirit World Depository, and we looked for stuff there. Other times we went to a human mall.A couple times I thought I saw a little black blur out of the corner of my eye. Or, rather, Kasumi thought she saw it.

_See? See? Did you see that? He's here…watching… waiting… lets go buy something pink see if that makes him come out. _

No, Kasumi, I admonish, We promised no pink stuff in the main house.

_But he's HERE. I __**swear**__ it!_

Then let him watch. Like he's see anything. I end the conversation at that and go back to my browsing of recliners There was a black one that was pulling my attention and keeping it. Unfortunately, the color we needed was green or brown, not black. Yet I decided to circle it anyway. I hate to say it, but, Kasumi was right. Nestled in the chair, visible eyes closed was…Hiei.

I told you sooooo…

I shush her and sit on the arm of the chair, waiting for him to acknowledge my presence. He didn't. I poke him with one finger, and was startled to see him open his eyes- also startled.

"Hn. When'd you get here?"

"What? I've been here for several minutes. Were you sleeping or something?"

I watched, amused as crimson eyes looked sleepily around the chair he was in. He didn't answer. I took that as a yes. I reached in my pocket and pulled out the communicator Botan had given me. "I found that single chair we need. I'm calling over a sales guy to put it in the moving van. Hiei, you'll have to move." I closed the communicator without letting the other group respond to anything I said. Hiei gave me a 'Hn.' and dashed off. As promised I flagged down a sales guy.

"I need that chair put in the moving van outside. We'll need a running total going on at a register. Put it on that, because we aren't done yet. Please." It wasn't like me to forget pleases. But I'd found a chair that Hiei seemed to like. I wasn't going to pass it up. Nu-uh. It made him go to sleep when he clearly wasn't planning it. No, it didn't go too well with our décor plan. But this was Hiei. He needed a bit of spoiling. I was sure the arguments would be minor.

_Yeah right. _

Hush. So, I found the others and we finished our shopping the other couches were brown, which will make Hiei's black one stand out a bit less. There was a loveseat, (Yusuke and Keiko's, I assure you, despite what Kasumi might try to tell you) a three cushion couch, and two with a table top between them. I think it was supposed to be a theater system set up. I can tell you right now it'll be more used for video games than movies or anything else. Anywho. The bedroom section was a bit pickier. Due to limited space and our game room decision. We girls had come to the conclusion that Yusuke and Kuwabara would be sharing a room. And to make that decision even more grating…we were getting them a bunk bed. No kidding.

I'm the only one who didn't need a bed. I'd modified my room specially. But in interest of keeping up a guise, we found an amazing day bed with a canopy. We got Hiei a basic bed, barely off the ground. Black. Kurama we got one that was slightly taller, and rich dark cherry. Bigger than Hiei's. We figured Hiei wasn't likely to use his anyway. I fully expected Sam to get more use out of the bedroom than Hiei. And not in the way that can be taken.

I gave a smile as we picked up a fancy dining room table, chairs and extra benches to match. There were a few other things too. Like a sideboard buffet that I intended to put in the dining room bay window. And a china cabinet that is the same finish. We'd turned the living room into a library for the sanity of us smarter types. The living room would function fine.

It would have been fine if we hadn't decided to let them have input into the Gameroom. We'd also made one small call to the house. We called to ask if they wanted something for the game room they were making.

"Kuwabara says he wants a big TV with the top of every game system out."

"Deal, but he has to supply the games."

"He says that's fine."

"Great, what about you?" Yusuke's answer shocked us all who were listening. In fact, most of wanted to strangle him through the mirror.

"I want a poker table."

"A WHAT?"

Several passerbys turned to look at us. We were so busy all trying to look in a compact mirror at once we really didn't have the presence of mind to care. Yusuke was grinning at us like fools. We'd promised we'd get whatever he wanted when we first started the call. I growled a bit at him and sighed. "Does Hiei even care?"

"He says he wants a dark place."

I give the other girls a grin. Keiko, Botan, Shizuru and Sam returned it. "We were planning on it. Is Kurama in the room?"

"Yeah, I'll hand you off to loverboy."

"He's not- nevermind." I sigh, but my heart takes off the instant the first red lock appeared. Of course, instantly Kasumi began mocking me for that. I can't help it if old habits die hard. Very hard. Part of me is so fangirl I can't kill it. Don't you hate that? Still, I managed to keep the instinct to squeal repressed, and keep my face straight.

"Request?"

"A chess table."

"Already anticipated that and found one here. Do you think this'll work." I turn the communicator to show the small table. "Will this do?" I intentionally left the communicator turned toward the table. Because the next words made me blush.

"It's perfect, Kassandra."

I wished I was oblivious to the looks everyone else was giving me. That scrutinizing gaze that I knew was brought on by my blush. I gave them a shut up look. "Thank you."

"Just a question. I had a look at the plans."

"Do I even want to know how you got those?"

"Well, I _**am**_ Youko Kurama. Now, where do you intend to put these things?"

"We're…Renovating…another room in the house. Bye." It actually hurt to hang up without saying goodbye, or hearing him speak again. Man, I'm definitely crushing badly. I gotta get rid of that. No swooning!

"Chess table is a go. It goes in the truck along with the bunk bed, and the vanities. Just a few more things and I think we're good to go. Next stop is paint and carpet."They were still giving me those looks. I sighed. "Stop. Staring. Please. We got work to do."

They seemed to snap out of it, but every once in a while I saw the glance, and when I saw it, I turned red only confirming what I knew they were thinking. I have got to kick this crush!

We had to go to a different store for the rest of this stuff. We needed paint, and flooring stuff. We had a theme for the downstairs, and everyone's rooms were simply a matter of matching their tastes. Not that hard. Generic rooms were harder. Like the soon to be gameroom. Mad dash for the right stuff. Koenma wanted it finished today. Luckily we had little minion demons and ogres… Or we'd never have a prayer.

* * *

For that Game room, we ( meaning I )decided on a nice deep brown, with red accents, and the trim white tinted a tad orange. One day, someone might ask why I chose those colors. I'll tell them honestly.

Brown makes it homey, red will encourage competitive spirit, but not too much because the entire room isn't the color. The orange hints should encourage plenty of energy and hopefully smooth over fights with it's friendliness. Maybe I should have planned on more orange.

We made decisions on the other rooms too. In fact, at the moment we were standing back and enjoying the fruits of our labors while we waited for the guys to get here.

The kitchen, family room, and nook areas were all done in greens and browns. Homey, restful, warm. The carpet in the family room was a darker green than anywhere else in the house. The walls, not that dark. The wood in the kitchen and the family room was medium brown wood, but the nook furniture was black. And, the nook furniture was going to have to cover a door. Not that that's a bad thing. So many exits.And exits work as entrances too…

The living room renovated into a library had a ton of cherry book shelves, and a couple smaller black swivel ones. Koenma promised he'd outfit those later. The carpet in there was dark blue, and the walls a medium periwinkle. Bean bags were scattered over the area, as well as several large and comfy chairs. There were actually five lamps in the room, some tucked in corners. We'd had carpenter demons put a window seat in the bay window, and bought a sea themed cushion for it. Two of the lamps were octopus lamps, with five bulbs that can be turned to point where it's needed.

The dining room was in the same cherry of the library, but it was definitely more abstract. Infinitely more so. Dark purple, gold, and scarlet were swirled on the walls. Hangings in the room said in kanji that I couldn't read:'Dragon,' 'Fox,' 'Sword,' 'Fist,' 'Monkey,' and 'Cat.' Sam had painted her own symbol on the ground. No one in our group knew what it meant. We likely didn't want to. Betcha can't guess whose is whose… a bit of inside jokes. Not that we'd ever be using this room.

The entryway was dark wood paneling, and there was a bench for shoe storage that sort of extended the wall, making the entrance to the library a tad bit narrower, though it was only two feet high, so it could easily be jumped or climbed. The storage thingie held 10 or 12 pairs of shoes, more than enough. This was both to respect custom, and if that didn't need to be done, I could just pass it off as an organizer.

Kurama's room we did in the deep dark greens, with lighter green trim. (…I'll avoid comments on eyes…) A leafy bed spread was found to match the rest. We got him several shelves for his plants, and a chest in front of the window for additional space. What else can I say, really? A bit of a gag from Shizuru and Sam, his dresser had a mirror. Wood with woven palm fronts on the drawers.

Yusuke and Kuwabara's combined room was dark teal. Like what would happen if you blended the colors of their uniforms and then added shreds of Hiei's clothing. No trim in that room. Seriously, they're gonna tear up the room anyway. Their bunk bed was a mix of wood and metal, and the bottom bunk was wider than the top. This was in case we have to pull them unconscious into the room. We were trying to plan for everything. For simplicity, we got them white bedspreads and called it good. If they want to complain, we'll get dye for them. We found a dresser that could fit all their junk- and got two.

Hiei's…I wanted to paint it black, all of it, throw blinds on the window with a privacy liner to block out all sun, and call it good. The others didn't agree. So, we compromised. Dark red was the trim, and the walls were all black with a bit of red designs. We were letting Sam design the…well, the designs. She was upstairs doing it now. And, I won out on the Privacy liner. Oh well. He'll have to put up with more than black. I figured, he wouldn't be in it often anyway. We got him a weapons rack too. I'd only ever seen his one weapon (Not counting his stolen Shadow Sword) Therefore the rack only had three spots. All else fails we'll give him stuff to put on it. I found a neat fiery bed spread on black, so we got that. A small black chest was found, that he could put stuff in other than his closet.

Sen's room was done in the same colors as Kurama's. However, his room was on the same level as mine, so we could do more cool stuff. We had the little painter demons paint trees on the walls, making it look like a forest. And, we got him a cushy little hammock instead of a bed. A dresser identical to Kurama's was found and put in his room.

And my room… well… my room is special. The walls were painted dark purple, with light purple flicked at it to form random spotty patterns. As a way to sate the other girls, I'd allowed them to pick a purply pink, and let them throw that onto the wall too. The gorgeous daybed I'd found was against one of the walls, the vanity against another wall. However, my real splendor came when I have the plumbing demons, and Kasumi's request, put a small hot tub in the center of the room. The chlorinated water cast awesome reflections on the ceiling, especially when the electrician demons put the light in. However, my real bed was not in sight. Neither was one of the windows. My pride and joy was the location of my bed. Both of the windows had sun darkening privacy liners like Hiei's room had. I even had a mural of a griffin guarding the entrance to my bed. (I bet you want to know what I did with my bed huh? Not yet!)

"Okay…so…Little craftsman demons. Don't go yet. People might want modifications to their rooms. The guys ought to be here any minute-" I paused and let Kasumi listen. "Actually, that's the car, so they're here. One of each type in each room. Scat! Please!" I kept forgetting my pleases! For Heaven's sake…I gave a grin as the door opened, hurriedly turning around before Kurama could come in.

"Welcome." Botan said with a grin. The other girls seemed to have everything under control. I hurried up the extra wide black wood spiral staircase, and then up the set of normal stairs so I could get to my room. Once there, I settled into my day bed and relaxed. The only way this room could be better is if I had a demon put a bay window in. But, it wouldn't fit. So, I didn't. I did however almost fall asleep until I heard a knock.

I ignored it. Just because I heard a knock didn't mean I had to do anything about it. What do you think I am? Some kind of… non lazy person? I hadn't put a lock on the door, though maybe I should have. They could come in. I stretched a little as the knocking grew a bit louder. And, rolled over to go back to sleep.

The door opened, I heard it. I just kept my eyes closed and pretended to not have. Anyone else it might have worked. "Kassandra?" I couldn't pretend I didn't hear that. My body's reactions were involuntary. My eyes shot open, and I met emerald eyes. My heart and all muscles melted right there. I looked completely relaxed, even if my heart was racing like mad.

"Yes?"

"Excellent job. I'm only making one small addition to the room. I'll need a rug about this size. Know where I can find one?"

I couldn't hide the blush, but with Kasumi's help, I pushed it down to just a light rose coloring. "All the rugs we have here are in use, but there's a ton in the Reikai inventory. You could probably go pick out of those." I wanted to ask what modification he made, but didn't. Yusuke and Kuwabara came in next. Neither looked too happy.

"I have to share a ROOM with HIM?" The feeling was as mutual as the speech was unison, I gathered.

"It was either that or no game room. I'm not sharing with anyone."

"Sen and Kurama could have shared." I blinked a little. I hadn't thought of that. I guess…maybe I'd subconsciously wanted Kurama to have a room of his own, and none of the other girls wanted to change that either. Wonder why they didn't suggest it.

"You're right, Kuwabara, we could have done that, but we didn't. Please just make the best of this? You guys can put whatever you want on the walls. Does that make it better?" They seemed somewhat appeased as they left. I sighed with relief, but realized that at some point Kurama had left too. Another sigh, not so relieved as I settled back down to go to sleep.

It was only a voice from behind the daybed that woke me out of my quest for a nap. "That could have gone much worse. But why didn't you combine my room with Sen's?"

I must have jumped without realizing it. This bed was small, hence why it wasn't my main one. But, I did manage to end up on the floor somehow, staring at an amused fox spirit host. "I-I thought…t-thought you left."

_Does it look like he left?_

I ignored her. He gave me a smile. "Nevermind. Why did you choose such a narrow bed. You got a little scared and you fell off. What if you move while you sleep?"

I gave a smirk. "It's not my bed. It's my couch. My bed is on the other side of the pool." I followed his gaze over the small pool to the solid wall. The room seemed a bit on the small side. There was a large griffin mural and right underneath it's hanging feet was a sliding cabinet door. Framing the door was rich purple curtains. It was about the size of a window… I watched as he stepped around the water and pulled open the cabinet door… to reveal…

My real bed. Yes, my bed. There was a mattress in there, 61/2 foot, The remaining space was a shelf for my personal belongings. The bedspread here was just as rich a purple as the outside one. My smirk hadn't faded, and I think my pleasure at my genius idea had managed to repress my crushing side effects. Sweet! Kurama however when he turned around sent my pulse racing again.

He was smiling. I bit my lip a tiny bit, and then let my smirk return in full.

"You embedded your bed in the wall?"

I nodded. "And it looks like a window with the curtains pulled. With this bed here, people will assume it's my bed, so if anyone tries to kidnap Kasumi again, they'll come in, find no one here and hopefully leave…" Logic. Not my greatest strong point, but it was here. I gave a wicked grin as I crawled back up on the daybed. Plus, it was just awesome to have your bed in the wall. And it was quite easy to renovate. There were a few drawers under my vanity, but with the addition of shoe storage in the closet, as well as rows of drawers in there too… I didn't need many more. The carpet was, surprisingly a sand color. Oddly enough, I'd let Kasumi let do most of the decisions on this room. There was a hammock stung between two corners, and in them was… my collection of stuffed animals…I'm not ready to grow up. And if that wasn't a neon sign to that fact, who knows what is?

I was starting to fall asleep again when Hiei burst through the door. I heard him pause, and he didn't speak either out loud or mentally. At least mentally to me. I cracked an eye open. He was staring at Kurama who was…right next to me? What had Hiei walked in on? No doubt, that was exactly what he was thinking too.

"Hn. Who drew on my walls?"

"Sam. Go find her. She did it. Not me." Loyalty is a virtue. But it would be much easier for Sam to deal with Hiei for whatever reason he needed dealt with than me. I'd get myself killed.

_And then maimed and desecrated. _

Pleasant thoughts, Kasumi.

_Like I care._

Are you and Youko fighting again?

_No! What makes you think that? Hmm? Hmm? I'm not overly pissy, am I? No! Am I anxious and snippy? Nope. Am I defensive about the topic of Youko and I? NO! So BACK OFF!!_

Geez… "Kasumi's fighting with Youko again."

"I wondered…" was all I got in response. Now my thoughts turned to why, but… who knows anymore. The minds of demons are entirely a mystery to me, even though…technically...half my mind is demonic… my thoughts were broken by Kurama's voice.

"I'd best go check on my modification. See you later, Kassandra."

"Ciao, Shuuichi." And he was gone, leaving me to wonder again about his modifications, what the humans would put up on their walls, and what exactly Sam had put on Hiei's wall. Then, finally sleep came, and I was free to embrace it. However, any fun dreams were squelched by Kasumi. No fun… I had no idea what the next few days would bring. That's probably a good thing, or I would have been on the first plane back to the states.

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**_If I don't get a few more reviews, you aren't getting the next chapter. >O_**


	3. Explanations 1 and 2

_My name is Kasumi. I was introduced in the past few chapters. You probably heard me intervening a tad. And very likely noticed how much of a genius I was when I knew Hiei was stalking us and no one else believed me. Yeah. That's the way it always is. I'm the outcast. No body believes a thing I say. Ever. Because I'm the delinquent cat demon with powers that noooobody but creepy bad guys appreciates. Nobody. My own host doesn't appreciate my power. Nor do any of these idiots I now have to live with. Isn't it horrible?_

_Anyway, I'm starting to regret double crossing Yukio. I had a preeetty nice deal going on there. Other than the fact that I was going to be bound to him…even then, maybe I could handle that. I mean, seriously. It's not like he was a wicked ugly oni, was he? No. He was wicked, I'll give him that. World domination and all. And not just one world, all three. But he was a drop dead gorgeous youkai. If Kassie hadn't been so scared of him, and so freaked out from being kidnapped, I don't doubt that she would have been able to withstand certain charms that I'm sure he could have turned on. _

_The only shame was that I really couldn't handle the whole jerk aspect. Seriously. Is there a youkai out there who isn't a jerk? Or is it just me? It's seriously horrible out there! I simply believe there are no non-jerk male youkai out there. Or, let me rephrase that. Available, non-jerk, youkai. Anyway… I don't particularly want to be anyone's mate again. And I'm willing to stoop to all means to avoid it, if you catch my drift. That includes keeping Kassie and that fox far, far apart. And pushing them apart too…Well, maybe especially if it includes that._

_What can I say? I have a need for chaos and destruction. It's in my blood. As some of you might recall, when I first took control, that was my first objective. Unfortunately, it was foiled, and I was put on probation with a rather nasty punishment for failure. A cell with Karasu. Ick. Anyway, for the last few months, I've been behaving. My need for cacophony was sated by interludes with Youko. Okay, maybe more than needs for destruction. Come on, I'm a cat demon. I'm gonna want, crave, and need attention…and after 16 years? I can't even say I could take refuge in the stuff Kassie got. Mainly, because Kassie didn't get any. In short, I was in essentially the same boat as the silver fox. I just had more control and more decency about it. _

_I came to my senses however, and am now back to shunning jerks. Did I lead him on? Maybe a bit, but seriously? He's a demon, he'll get over it. I got what I needed…But now, I have one need that needs to be sated again, before I lose my mind. That's right, that need for turmoil and devastation. Heheheh. Yes. I've got plans. Perfect ones. I'll be out and in before they even realize I was out in the first place. _

_Oh, I'm sure by now you're wondering why you haven't heard anything from Kassie, or any of the others in this house who don't know the meaning of the word 'privacy'. That's because…they're all sleeping! Yup. I managed to convince the tired Kassie that the bottle of switchative was really her bottle water. She's not the brightest….The others are all sleeping like babiiiies. That's how come I can sate my needs for disorder and ruin!_

_Carefully I slip past the curtains, and into the room. The water was casting reflections on the ceiling that made me sigh happily. So comforting was the visions on the wall that I might have forgotten my objective. Nah, not really. I slipped out the door and was down the first set of stairs with no problems. Even the second set of stairs gave me no problems. I could almost see the door. The portal to my pleasure was waiting. I was going to finally cause some chaos! As I was passing the library, I heard a voice and froze with a groan. _

_"Kasumi. Where are you going?"_

_"Nowhere now… shouldn't you be in bed, fox?" _

_Youko, the very kitsune I'd been avoiding, stood from his spot in the window sill, silver hair and tail flowing like a curtain as he moved closer to where I was frozen. "Shouldn't you?" _

_I shrug, brushing my blanched lock over my shoulder. "No. You see, I spent all of today napping. Not tired in the least." I roll my eyes as that smirk comes over his face. The smirk that said he knew exactly how I could spend that energy. I give him a quick and concise glare that says no, and it goes away. I shrug a bit. "I was just going to get...a breath of fresh air…" Causing chaos would have been a breath of fresh out. There was no way I was getting out the door now. I glared at the floor for a moment or so. I was spacing out, and barely realized he was talking to me. But I heard it. _

_"Why are you mad at me?"_

_I huff a little. "Why? Why must you read so much into what happened? It was good for both of us, but nothing lasts forever Youko…and I've just been hurt too many times to even give it another chance." The shock on his face almost made me feel a little sorry for him. But it didn't. Instead, I think I got a little disgusted. I rolled my eyes. _

_"Youko Kurama, you're going soft. The Legendary Bandit is giving into the human ideal of love. Wouldn't that be a story for the Makai Tabloids." I give a smirk, and head back upstairs, flipping my hair over my shoulders as I went, leaving him to do whatever it is he was going to do. _

_Honestly? It wasn't really my problem. I had no conscience. Okay, I had one, but she was asleep right now. Now, it was definitely time for me to regroup and try again. What, you seriously thought I was going to give up. Hah! Now's the best time to act. He'll be so wrapped up in emotions, he won't notice the little sounds. As I crawled back into Kassie's bed, the sheer genius of my plan twisted my features into a triumphant, feline grin._

* * *

I stretch as I wake up. I always did, and probably always will. I hurriedly toss on a pair of pants and a grab a button down shirt out of the closet, buttoning it fast and hurrying downstairs. The rush? I was hungry, duh. And thirsty. I had slept through dinner last night. I was tired, but I shouldn't have been. Odd. As I reach the kitchen, several pairs of eyes latch onto me from the family room

I meet them for a second, and look down. I had misbuttoned my shirt. Oh well. Easy fix. I turn around, leaning against the counter to fix it. I immediately walk toward the fridge. I pull out the gallon of milk and proceed to pull myself a full glass. Was it just me, or since Kasumi had awakened, did I like milk a lot more? I shook it off, returned the gallon to it's shelf and closed the door with a kick. When I turned back around, already halfway done draining my glass, they were all still looking at me. I bring the glass down, licking my lips.

"Okay, what now?"

"Other than your milk mustache." Sam asks. My tongue goes to try to eliminate that.

"Yeah, other than that."

"Well… um… come sit down… Oh, and grab a vial of switchative from the cupboard." Confused, I obeyed. If anyone ever found the switchative, our excuse was it was an experiment that had to be done in the kitchen cupboard. If Kurama said it, no one would doubt him. He was a genius. If I said it, no one would doubt me. Because I was a psycho. Still, why I needed some now…

"Okay, tell me what's going on." And then, as an afterthought.. "Please." Why was it so hard to remember that word? Sam indicated to the vial. I rolled my eyes and stuck my tongue out at her. Kasumi, I thought, What did you do this time?

_Nothing. Why do you think I did something. Are you sure you're okay Kassie? You really haven't been the same since Yukio…_

Kasumi. Shut it. I sigh, pouring part of the odorless mixture into my mouth with a sigh. Soon Kasumi's lithe form was standing there. She promptly settled down on the floor, my glass of milk in her hand.

--

_I had no idea what they were up to. But, I wasn't going to let it bother me, that was for sure. Cool as a cat. Because I was one. "What's the emergency? None of you look to be bleeding, or, sadly enough, dying." _

_"Cut to the chase Kasumi! Where were you last night?" Oooh, Yusuke did not sound too happy. Oh well. All the better. _

_"Sleeping, like you were."_

_"Kurama says you tried to get out." I roll my eyes, not even looking at the red head. _

_"Is that all he says?" After letting the remark sink in, and watching the confused humans and Sam, and the expressionless features of the other demonic ones, I sigh. "I did, but when I realized it was futile I went to sleep. Why? Do you have another idea of my late night activities?"_

_No one smiled, though I could see a few lecherous gears turning in a couple heads. Kurama turned on the TV which fizzled into view as the outside of the house. Motion on the third level drew the camera's gaze there. Out of the window crawled an ordinary looking black and white cat. He paused the frame._

_"That, is Kassie's window. The one she sleeps in."_

_"Kassie sleeps in the window?" Kuwabara asked. We all ignored him. I shrug._

_"Your point, fox?"_

_"Why were you sneaking out, and what did you do." _

_I nearly spewed the milkI'd be enjoying out. Immediately I stood, tail waving behind me. Sam popped over toward me, took the glass out of my hand and popped back down to the couch._

_"How. Dare. You. Accuse. Me. Of. That!" My fury was clear and unsoftened right now. "Do you really think a demon like that could have this-" I pause and condense water in the air to form a mist in my hand, and then form the mist into a familiar looking dagger to them, and then, in my other hand, form a solid gold…frying pan. "level of power? Hmm? Hmm? I have never been so INSULTED in my LIFE. Besides. That cat is black and WHITE. How could it be ME? Ugh. You insult both me an your own intelligence in the same accusation." _

_I threw myself back to the floor in a huff, closing my eyes. The only movement was my tail constantly flipping back and forth. Sam wrinkled her nose. _

_"She does have a point guys."_

_"Why is she so offended about being mistaken for that cat?" Yusuke asked, more than a little confused. Kurama, though staring at the screen still, answered. _

_"In the Makai, an animal youkai's power can be well judged by it's number of tails. This cat only has one tail. Accusing Kasumi of being that cat is the same as accusing her of being the weakest of all beings. The equivalent, Yusuke, of telling you or Kuwabara that your fighting was only the level of a child."_

_I let my words drip off my tongue, laced with venom. "Oh yes, do tell, how would you respond to that one, eh?" They ignored me. _

_"So how many tails do you have, Kurama?" He sighed._

_"Youko has five tails. The most tails an animal youkai can have is nine."_

_Sam laughed a little. "If he had nine, I wouldn't be able to avoid calling him Naruto." Only Kassie, on the inside, laughed. Silence fell, which Kassie in my head occupied to herself with humming. Finally, I rose. _

_"Well, if you all are done slurring my good name with ridiculous accusations, I will retreat to nurse my pride."_

_"One more thing. If that's not you, where did the cat come from?" _

_"I found it the other day while we were shopping. I didn't tell Kassie, but I went and rescued it from the pet shop that night. It's been in her room since. Last night it was whimpering, so I let it out the window. She'll probably by back shortly. Anything else?"_

_"Just a quick check. What color are that cat's eyes?"_

_"Green."_

_He zoomed in the film, latching onto the feline's eyes. They were green._

_"Alright, you're clear. If it was you, and I'm not saying it is, the eyes would have been the same as yours. Just for future reference, how many tails do you have?"_

_I lock eyes with the fox and smile. "I'm not sure I want to tell you. But I suspect, I won't be able to rest until I tell you.." I give a little smirk. "But a kid's early rappin ' startles dozen minus 4, to be divided amongst duo." I end with two fingers up. My cryptic message delivered, I down a bit more of the switchative, letting Kassie back out. _

_--_

I break the silence. "Well, what a merry morning. I had no idea it was so easy to slight Kasumi." I shrug a little and crawl over to Sam's chair and sit there, almost like a dog (or cat) staring at her intently. It took her a while to notice, but when she did, she handed down my glass of milk. I give her a 'Prrup!' and settle back onto the floor, enjoying my milk like a child might. Mature was never a word used to describe me. I yawn a little.

"So, what are we doing today?" Sam asks cheerily when she was done staring. Kurama sighed.

"Well, we'll need to go to Meiou High and get you two and Hiei signed up.." Sam suddenly shifted. I gave her a funny look, set my glass aside, and then… pounced on my best friend.

"Out with it!"

"Mummy and Daddy…they… didn't exactly…give me… permission…to live…here…" I groan, falling off the couch backwards and ignoring the pain.

"You're kidding me. You mean…I have to live…with five guys… ALONE? That's not safe or sane. Thank heaven it's not a firework. Still, I' m thinking that's still not a very good idea. What if Hiei or Kura…you know...snaps?"

Sam smirked. "Well, if it's Hiei, call my name and I'll be there." The next part was whispered in my brain, and I instantly turned scarlet. "If it's Kura, I don't think you'll need me there to help you out. I think you'll be just happy fixing it yourself…" I didn't have to push her out. Kasumi did it for me, along with certain well chosen words to describe exactly what she thought of Sam's wicked thoughts. I agreed. I didn't need them either.

"You have the sickest mind." Was all that came out aloud from the rampage. Yeah, it drew a couple stares, and I was glaring at her. Sam however, was laughing.

"I don't think you need to worry. Between you know who's self control, you, Kasumi, and pride on everyone in here's accounts, plus, that lovely little safety mechanism… I think you'll be fine."

I blink. "Oh…I'd forgotten all about that." I heard a pop and came back to my senses. "Hey, Sam!" Too late, she was gone. I sigh, finally sitting up from where I'd fallen. I promptly yawn, and lay my head down on the plush carpet before they can ask about the 'lovely safety mechanism'

"I love this carpet…" I started to fall asleep, and everyone else kind of just filed out. If that whole school thing was important…well, I was sure they'd wake me up.

* * *

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	4. Why you don't listen to Kasumi

Sure enough, not even an hour later (I think it was an hour…) Sam was poking the back of my neck repeatedly. I knew she was trying to wake me up, I was just trying to ignore her. Getting kicked in the side however when she lost her patience was impossible to ignore. I scrambled to my feet, growling a little.

"Alright, Alright, I'm up, I'm up!"

My darling friend brightly smiled and dragged me into the kitchen with a ridiculously cheery "Good." As expected, even though I'd never get used to it, the Tantei were all sitting together, chatting quietly, as if Sam's awakening ritual hadn't been their idea at all. Like I'd believe that. My best friend wasn't capable of being that treacherous without prompting. Emerald eyes looked up and though my heart skipped a beat, I remained conscious enough to note what was being said.

"Samantha… why did you wake her? I said we still had another half an hour." His eyes met mine, and my heart rate sped up rapidly. Then they flicked away to the clock and it started to return to normal. GAH! This was ridiculous! I HAD to kick this!!

Sam grinned. "Well, if we're lucky, Kassie will be non comatose by that time. If we woke her up right before we left, she wouldn't have time to wake up properly." Or, maybe my best friend WAS capable of that level of treachery. She gets a firm glare from me.

"Hey, I manage to make it to the bus stop on time, even when I get up late."

"Which is most of the time."

"Well, yes, but- MY POINT IS I can wake up in a rush."

"Actually that's just a half an hour adrenaline rush from being late. By the time the adrenaline fades away, you're awake."

I glare. "Now that can't possibly… wait… can that be true?" Sam was nodding enthusiastically, but I pushed past her and got in the fridge for the milk carton. There might have been two glasses worth of milk still in there. I was definitely thirsty after my nap, and I knew that the glasses were all dirty… so, despite my own distaste for such a habit, I unscrewed the cap and took the milk in gulping swigs. In my opinion, it's okay to drink from the carton if you're going to finish it.

Feeling energized, and darn lucky, I grin, glancing at the open trash can. I aimed, I nearly fell over in my exaggerated throwing stance and I SHOT!...Right over the open lid, hitting the wall, and sending the carton flying right back at me.

"EEK!" I hit the ground, and shouted "DUCK!"

"Too late…" Kuwabara laughed. I rolled over onto my back and peered over to the table. The jug was inYusuke's hands now. There wasa splatter of milk on his face. I looked back and there was milk on the wall, and all over the floor. Miraculously, there was none on me… I must be a repellant…

"Ooooopsie.." He lifted the jug as if he was going to throw it. I curled my self up into as small a ball as I could make myself. The plastic bounced off my calf and…right into the trash can. I stare in disbelief.

"No…way… That is just NOT fair."

"What can I say. It's my show." I threw the cap at him, missing his head entirely. It almost hit Kuwabara. I let my head hit the floor with a thud, ignoring the pain. After looking at the patterns on the ceiling for a few minutes, I quietly ask a very serious question.

"So WHAT was SO important that you HAD to WAKE me up, BEFORE I was READY to be AWAKENEDEDED?" Okay, so maybe it wasn't entirely quiet, and I don't think I was quite sane for that last word. But, I think that might actually be…sane for me… Scary.

It was Kurama's voice that answered, which honestly didn't give me any reason to lift my head up, ya know? "You need to go take entrance exams."

"Oh, for Saryashiki? Easy Peasy. I can get in there. Come on, they let Yusuke in."

"Hey!"

"Sorry… but it's true.."

"I'd like to agree with you Kassie-"

"Kass."

Kurama sighed. Yep, all this and I still wouldn't let him call me that. I didn't even like Kasumi calling it. I didn't have a lot of a choice though with her. It was still a name I wasn't comfortable with him using. He called me that too often, I'd start to relax too much. If I were to relax to much, fan girl instincts could kick in, or worse, no fan girl instincts that are also negative. Just better the affection 'ie' was left out…My self control was always in question. Had been since I was…13… How I met Ryan…I shake that memory out quick as a wink.

"Fine. If Kasumi managed to find a way out, Kass, Yusuke and Kuwabara wouldn't be able to contain it. Besides, they aren't at Saryashiki Junior High anymore."

"Where are they then?" I ask.

"That's irrelevant." Nice answer. "In either case, you'll be attending Meiou High, with me and Hiei."

"W-W-W-W-W-W-W-WHAT?" Wait, back up, REWIND! I can't handle that kind of a workload. Meiou was for the SMART people. I just got lucky. Meiou was for the people with intelligences like Yuu Kaito and Kurama. The very idea of me going there made me want to laugh. Unfortunately, when you listen to the serious fox say it, it's hard to laugh. "Hooooold on a sec. I'm not gonna be able to pass that test. I'm average by American standards. That makes me BELOW average in Japanese standards. That school is for ABOVE average students. The only thing I'm ABOVE average in is NERDINESS."

"And airheadedness!" My adorable best friend piped in. I add the adorable part to remind me why I don't strangle her. Or try.

"Sadly, Yes. See why I won't cut it in that school? What on earth possesses you to think I can handle-"

"Kasumi."

"Oh yeah, that'd do it…" My argument was officially blocked on every hand. I sigh annoyed. "But still I can't- Wait, did you say you AND Hiei?" More than bit belated but it kinda just hit me he said that.

"Yes, Hiei and myself. Insurance, because if hiei blows his cover it's a lot less paperwork for Koenma than if I do.And, probably a few other reasons." I blink at him. He doesn't meet my eyes, instead he's looking at Hiei, who just looks back. Lately, they weren't letting me on conversations.

"Hey! Say it so the rest of us can hear it!"

That snapped them out of it. Yusuke found my freaking out amusing, and thought it'd be fun to point something out to me. "You know, I'm sure if you're having problems the fox here could tut-"

"If you say tutoring, I'll throw something at you."

"You already tried that, Kassssssssie."

Point taken. But I wasn't letting HIM know that. "Fine, I'll have SAM throw it." that shut him up. Samantha Kaos always hit her mark. As for Sam, she was standing behind Hiei, poking at his hair. Yes, poking. Then the poking turned to stroking, and I didn't have the heart or courage to tell her to stop. The heart because that's the first time Hiei had let her get close to him since the 'pink' episode. The courage because his eyes were closed and if he was enjoying it, I wasn't going to be the one to stop it.

I did still value life.

Even I was about to go embarrass myself on a test.

Did it ever cross my mind to tell him 'No?' Not in the least. I'd NEVER told him no in the past, and I didn't intend to in the future. This is probably not a good thing. With the exception of that one time that I slapped (I hate saying it even now) him, (and regretted it later…it led to me getting kidnapped… YUCKY!) I don't think I ever acted very much against him…

As I learned, bad things happened when I did, so I'm not all that inclined to do so, ya know? Yeah..I was going to have to go take the test. It never really crossed my mind to say no.

That's why now, fifteen minutes later, I was being prodded inside an office, right alongside Hiei. It made me feel a little better that I wasn't alone in this. I entertained myself by staring at the posters on the wall. Duh, they were in Japanese. I prodded Kasumi for a translation. She looked out.

_Enjoy your drugs, Don't worry about protection, Love your neighbor…_

By the time Kurama came back, my eyes were glued in shock to the innocent looking characters. No way! No way anyone could leave notices like that on the SCHOOL BOARD!

"Kassandra what's wrong?"

"Shuuichi…what do those things say?" He stared at the things and blinked. "Don't do drugs, Abstinence, Please no Public displays of affection in the halls. Why?"

My eyes formed a glare and aimed it at the ceiling. He followed the gaze for a moment and then sighed, leaning closer to whisper. "Tell her to translate right, or else." I repress a shiver from the whisper, and calm my heart- again. How horrible. I hate this…but I love it. Oh, what to do?

_Now, you ignore him, like all us more experienced women do…_

So you qualify as experienced?

_Sweetheart, I am several centuries old. I am experienced, in more ways than you might think, alright? Just accept it. _

Fine. I ended the conversation there, just as Kurama placed a paper in my hand and started to push me into the room. I was about to step through, when he stopped and turned me around again, slipping a pencil affectionately behind my ear. I knew my cheeks turned bright red, I was sure with how close his hand was to my cheek, he could feel the heat emanating from it. My eyes met his for a brief moment. I truly couldn't see anything but emerald.

I was very aware of the proximity he was in from pushing me into the room. I hadn't realized how easy it'd be to…

_Test, Kassie…Focus Kassie. KASSIE!_

Hmm? Oh well that did it. I turned even brighter and hurried to the table. Of course, one glance at the paper told me I desperately needed the help of the cat demon in my head. Kasumi...I can't read… this.

_Oh… yeah… Fine. First Question…If the square root of 69 is 4.1, then the following equation is…_

Oh yuck, math… Luckily, I got to English eventually. After several promptings from Kasumi on the track my train of thought was on, (it kept wanting to derail, with a certain fox at the switch) I finally managed to finish it, tucking the pencil back behind my ear. (it felt right there..) and then I slipped out of the room, handing the paper off to the secretary, and out of the building as fast as possible.

Of course, I had no sooner gotten out on the street than I was completely totally lost. The others were still doing something inside. Kasumi smirked inside and laughed.

_Lets go left, Kassie. I remember how to get home…_

Sounded good to me anyway. I obey her directions, one after the other. They end up with me in some kind of alley. Sudden flashbacks plague my memory. The last time I was in an alley….I close my eyes.

Ryan, one horrible mistake from a time in my life I'd like to re do if I could, and his thugs…Hemmed in...escaping up…cold minutes with the Floridian wind suddenly bitter and rushing around with no end…Stubborness on my part…Getting me in trouble…Yukio's icy touch as he tore me away from safety… Later, that same ice though Kasumi was in control… Safety tore away again, by that same bitter cold… Chilly fingers working their way up to try to remove the only thing holding that black and blue monstrosity up… My pleases falling on deaf ears…A living creature burning to ash within inches of me….the smell… sulfur and melting water…

_Kassie…Kassie…KASSIE! Someone's here! _

That got me out of it. In an instant, I was on heavy guard. My eyes were open and looking everywhere. I couldn't see anyone, but Kasumi was normally right about these things. Indeed after a few minutes of franticly searching the alley for movement, what I'd taken for a shadow moved. And not a small bit. It emerged into semi light, casting a glance up at the sun.

"You know, mice shouldn't play around the cats. It tends to get them in trouble. Wouldn't want to get caught, now would we?"

I gulped, backing up a little more toward the wall. Better to make sure I had at least one side covered. the voice was male, and sadly, it seemed amused by my reaction. I could see his eyes clearly in the shadows, other than that, only his dark trench coat. His eyes locked onto mine, and a smirk seemed to shine in his voice.

_Kassie, you're cornering yourself!_

"Now, Now, Kassie… Don't fret. I promise… it won't hurt for very long. I'm very fast when I'm in a mood like this."

_Kassie… run! _

I wanted to obey, but I couldn't. Blue eyes were entrancing. I couldn't look away, even though I wanted to.

"Come here." I couldn't refuse the voice. I took a few steps toward him, into the semi light. It wasn't very long before I realized my back was now against the wall again, much more firmly than I'd had it. Cold fingers brushed my hair away from my neck. Cold crept closer and closer to my now exposed neck. The only thing I could do was whimper, and even that was stolen with a brisk and commanding "Shh." I was trembling, out of sheer fear, my eyes squeezed shut.

No…not more cold…I couldn't take more of this cold. What, did I have an 'ATTACK ME' sign on my head? How did I get myself into trouble like this. I didn't blame Kasumi though I could have. She seemed to be shouting something, but I was too busy cowering to pay attention to what.

I heard a snap, and a hiss of air that hit my neck hard. The arms that'd been supporting me had released and I fell to the ground in a heap. I didn't hear anything else until a soft voice was whispering in my ear, comforting words. "Kassie… It's alright…he's gone… he won't fight in the light." Another voice murmured quietly. "Of course, come night there might be a problem."

"No, he won't come after her. She was a meal of convenience nothing more. Kass… come on, everything's okay…what possessed you to run off? Why didn't you wait for us."

Quietly, and a bit distractedly, I murmur "Kasumi…said she knew…the …way…home…"

"Well, her way home could have gotten you killed." That was Hiei… Hiei…was showing concern…I almost laughed. If I hadn't felt so…fuzzy…. Sam was laughing..no one else laughed like that. Kasumi sighed.

_Next time, we don't leave the house without a switchative. I knew exactly how to handle what I'd gotten us into…_

Riiiiight…I thought with a sigh. "Can we…go home…I'm sleepy…again… …"

I felt sturdy arms holding me up. Wrapping me up closely, I felt totally safe. For the first time… funny, how I had to be scared to death (again) before I could feel that. I wasn't sure who it was. I did know, I wouldn't be hurt ,at least not in the near future.

I let sleep edge in on my vision. I had no reason to fight it. I was safe, at least for the moment. I wasn't exactly sure what had happened, but I was sure it would all be made known unto me…eventually.

**_No, this wasn't a random attack, it has a purpose, I promise…_**


	5. Setting the Scene, Check!

When I started to come to, the first thing I noticed was the scents. Ash and roses. The later was Kurama. The former, I'd come to associate with Sam recently. When I finally opened my eyes, all of this was blurry. But, I was able to pick out the scarlet hair that made my heart skip, and the flaming orange of my best friends. Two for two to Kasumi's sense of smell.

I bolted upright in a second groping at the air with a passion, and then towards my friends with less of one. My voice when I spoke was rapid. "Whathappenedtomeandandaanda-"

"Kass, chill dearie. You just had a run in with, well, to be blunt, a vampire." Sam was such a good friend when she wasn't putting pink things on Hiei...and then using it to blackmail the rest of us.

"Wha-?"

"And, apparently, as you woke up your body was still trying to fight off his presence." That was Kurama's logical voice. I don't know how he does it; always sounding so logical...It almost makes me sick. Almost, meaning not quite.

"A v-v-vampire?"

"Yes," Sam sighed. "Catch up with us here. What you, thought they didn't exist? Sweetheart, when you gonna learn that if one thing exists, it ALL exists? Demons, vamps, Furies, Valkyries, wraiths, djinns, Acephalus, Aigomuxo... I know this really nice Nephilim, I can introduce you if you'd like."

Kurama cleared his throat and Sam switched to apologetic mode. "Oh...ooops, so sorry, I didn't mean to step on your toes there. I just thought...you know...if you're not going to... ya know...with Kassie... she might as well get out and find someone who will... ya know...um... I'm gonna stop now... um... Ah... yeah... HIEI! The FOX IS GLARING AT ME!"

With a pop, Sam was gone, and I watched a bit confused as a pile of leaves settled on my floor. For one moment, I thought about questioning. Then, I came to the conclusion...it SO wasn't worth breaking my mind, since it was already a bit fragile. I was dizzy, but as I tuned back into Kurama's voice, I realized why.

"The after effect of his control will wear off soon, Kassie."

"Don't call me Kassie."

He sighed. "Fine." He rose from where he'd been seated on my couch. Whoa, he was sitting next to me and I hadn't noticed? Yes, I'm cured! In the middle of my rejoicing, however... "I was glaring at Sam because Nephilim are not proper companions for anyone to keep. Not because I was being jealous." I made a note to look up Nephilim...but, as he explained how he wasn't being jealous, my heart fell, and seemed to break temporarily into a million pieces. It'd fix itself soon. Kasumi was already working on it. I just wonder when the word 'glue' became spelled 'b-i-t-t-e-r-n-e-s-s.'

"O-Okay..."

My hair was an absolute mess. Any semblance of the ponytail I'd had it in was now...well, shredded was a good way to put it. More than half of it was lying in, around, and over my face. As it turns out, Kasumi got to put her weird black glue away, because Kurama reached over and pushed the errant locks behind my ears, one by one. The scarlet on my cheeks patched my heart together just fine. When he was done, he shook his head at me.

"You just keep getting into trouble, don't you?"

I smile brightly, compulsively making a peace sign with my fingers, before I could even think about it, really. "Yuppers. Didn't you know my family's name is synonymous with trouble? Of our own making and of others designs."

"Oh? And how much of your own making have you been in?"

"Yup...Oh... um...well... I'd...rather...not talk... you know, you'd better ask Sam about that... Um... yeah..." I hurriedly pulled my woven blanket over my head, the fringe tickling my nose. I was NOT telling them about that. I know I left you guys hanging on a lot of things in the last story. Like, why Ryan was after little old me... well...yeah...that's one of those things I'm NOT telling.

There was silence outside of my self pitched and half collapsed tent. Finally, I heard him speak again.

"Kass, I have a question. Would you lik-"

"KASS! HELP! ITS HIEI AND SEN!"

I was out from under the blanket in a second. As much as I really wanted to know what he was going to say...Letting those two at it for too long was asking for serious trouble. Yes, they were still at it. While I wasn't a firsthand witness of when they met, I'd heard enough stories. And, despite objections and denials on Hiei's part, it was still very clear that he was jealous of the attention that Sam got gave and received regarding Sen. No doubt you've all seen Hiei mad. Now picture hormones thrown into it. Jealous AND mad Hiei.

Now you know why I was practically tripping down the stairs despite Kurama's quiet warning to slow it down. I panicked when I saw they weren't in the house. Maybe that was for the best. Suddenly the sun was blocked from the windows. What little came in was tinted green.

"Uh-oh..." I murmur. Suddenly light filled the house again. Flickering light. Then the smoke clouded up the window and it was dark again. "Double uh-oh." I didn't really want to go out there...In fact, I might just go upstairs and hope that if one of them dies I won't be blamed... Wow...that sounded really selfish of me...That doesn't sound like me at all, really. Okay, I'd feel REALLY bad if one of them died, regardless of what I said seconds earlier. But, going up to my room still sounded like a good idea.

"KASSANDRA!"

"Alright, I'm COMING!"

Despite my desire to go and hide in the attic, I went outside instead. Of course, there wasn't much to see. You know, the usual. Grass, trees, sky, clouds...

Oh, and the towering wall of bamboo that was being eaten away at by a ravenous line of fire. And one very confused girl in the middle of it. And I don't mean myself. Though I was confused, I wasn't in the middle of it. Apparently, Sam had made herself a stone pillar and sat on top of it, and neither flames nor twisting vegetation could reach her. How on earth did she do that? How she got up there was easy to answer. Where she got a pillar was an entirely different matter. If she left it there, it would make a very interesting conversation piece in the future.

('Why is there a pillar in your yard?'

'You know, I'm just not sure...')

Yeah. I'd have fun explaining THAT to Koenma... Maybe I'd make someone else do it...Kurama...Hiei...Kurama...Yusuke...Kuwabara...Kurama...Sen...Kurama... Probably make Sam do it... Or Kurama... I caught my repetition after a while and l blushed as I yelled. Luckily, I could blame it on the heat.

"BREAK IT UP!"

The response I got? Well, depends...How much does an instant wall of plant life shutting me out, and a fireball count as an answer.

"I'M NOT KIDDING GUYS. I'LL TELL KOENMA IF YOU DON'T STOP! AND HE'LL PUT YOU IN A CELL WITH KARASU!"

All plant life returned to its normal size. Fires that were burning were put out. I sighed with relief and collapsed next to a pile of still smoldering grass. When I looked up, the two were glaring daggers at each other. Oh well... better than glaring flowers and fire at each other. Sam popped down, leaving a leaf and ash sculpture of...what looked like herself on top of the pillar... I don't know how she did that, and at the moment, I wasn't going to try. Like I could with the attack of the grateful psycho.

"Yes! Thank you, Kass. They were going to fight till the death! For my honor! Just like chivalrous knights of old!" she was clinging to me in a fashion that made it a little hard to breath.

"Sam, if you wrote that on his wall, I'm not surprised he was mad at you."

"Huh? No, he couldn't read what I wrote on the wall, that's why he came to get me... But, I didn't tell him what I wrote, nu-uh... he'll have to...well, let's just say he'll have to get creative to get it out of me."

I sigh. "Sam, you're lucky he doesn't just kill you..." to my surprise, she laughed, and popped away from me, leaving Hiei's katana on my chest where he'd been?! What on earth? Hiei didn't seem too pleased with it, but he couldn't do much due to her now clinging to him.

"No no no... Hiei would neeeeeever hurt me... Even if he could, which he can't. For I am the master of the REPLACEMENT JUTSY!"

"Don't you mean...Jutsu...?"

"Nu-uh. Jutsy! It's my version of a jutsu, because I-!" She stopped clinging and assumed a triumphant superhero pose for a second. "-am super special, and unique, and... hmm...Hiei, what else am I?"

"Annoying." He answered still glaring at me as if demanding his katana back. I stood, with it in my arms to bring it back over to him before he lost patience with me, Sam, Sen, or all three. I add Sen in there because he couldn't keep his nose OUT of it.

"Don't forget beautiful."

Sam took both comments in equal oblivious stride. "Right, my knights! Ooo, I rhymed... and ANNOYING AND BEAUTIFUL!" And, then she was gone. A bright blue blanket that I recognized from her bed at home was in her place. I handed Hiei the katana and picked up the blanket. How confuddling. Where on earth had it come from?

"Alrighty then... No more fighting you too...I don't want you guys in a cell with Karasu anymore than you want to be in a cell with him... I'm pretty sure no one in their right mind would even volunteer to be in the same BUILDING as Karasu. You guys made a good choice." Insert my vigorous nodding and quick running into the house. Yeah, I wasn't sticking around for the after fight banter. I'd rather NOT be the target, thanks.

--

Once inside, I found that there was no one to bother me. Whoopee! So, in light of that, I decided to venture down to the basement. Unfortunately, to get to the basement, I first had to find the DOOR to the basement. Of all the rooms, the one we were not allowed to design was that. So... I'd never been into the basement...and, apparently, I had no idea HOW TO EVEN GET THERE!!

Giving up, I sighed and walked towards the library. Then I realized, as I reached the stairs, I hadn't looked in the door next to it. The plans had labeled it storage, but since the whole basement was a Koenma special...Ah, why not. I opened the door, and to my surprise...

"What on earth?"

An evelater. I mean, a vaterel. GAH! I mean an elevator! In this house! I knew it didn't go up though... And as I peeked in, it had two settings. Main, and Basement. Sweet. I paused for a moment and then cheered.

"We have an elevator!" I then scrambled inside and shut the door. An eerie green light turned on and I hurried to hit the right button. Down, Down, down it went. Alright, it didn't go that far. It only took maybe two minutes. There was a door knob in front of me which I turned. I threw the door open all excited like!

...and cringed when it hit something, and that something (more like somethings) clanged, clattered and crashed all over the floor until it fell with a plop into the water. Yes, Water

_Good Grief, Kassie, what did you do?? _

Don't call me Kassie!

_Whatever, I'll call you what I'd like..._

Gah! Impossible demon!

_You have no idea._

I opted for the ignoring method at this point. I peeked around the door, a little reluctantly. I wasn't sure I wanted to know what I'd knocked over. I mean, what if it was the source of all of the guys spirit energy, or all of Koenma's power, or, worse of all ,the single support for the house and it was all about to come down cause I knocked...a storage rack over?

Littering the floor were various tools, boxes, swimming stuff, and pool toys. Awesome! Pool toys! I looked around a little more. In front of me was a good sized pool, probably about 25 feet across one way, and 20 feet the other way. I say roughly because it was a very curvy pool. Not square. Cuuuuuurvy. Not square. Cuuu- Okay, I think you all got it. Big pool. On the far side away from me was a diving board. I wouldn't use it, but maybe someone would. Lounge chairs in many differing sizes lined the sides of it. I looked to my sides and noted a door on each. One was labeled cabana. When I opened that door and looked in, I found piles of towels, several pairs of goggles, and two different showers. There were also some pool care things, like the pool nets and stuff. I think there was a cabinet labeled spare swimsuits too,

The other door was labeled **DANGEROUS!! DO NOT ENTER!! HIGH POWER FOUND WITHIN!!** Staring at the message, I noted the odd looking ogre that appeared to be saying this message. Smiling, I opened the door despite the insistent warning on the outside. Two signs stood before me. One had an ogre on it. It looked like George to me. The other had a pile of books in front of a building. Beneath each of them stood a trap door. I didn't have to lift them to know there were portals beneath them, so I left them alone and shut the door.

I sat down next to the pool fighting the temptation to put my feet in the lovely blue water. After a moment or so, I gave up and slipped off my socks. The water felt so good on my feet, I just sat there and made little waves with my feet. These moments, mostly around water, were ones I never wanted to end. Pleasant sounds of water slapping the sides of the pool, no stress, the sun on my back...wait...sun? I was underground! I looked up and simply stared into sunlight. Either there should be a house above it, or grass, or woods, or something! No, no, the only thing above this was glass, which let the sunlight in.

Glancing around, I see a button behind the diving board. I assumed that would let the glass slide away. Wondering if there were any other buttons, I looked behind me and saw the elevator was still there, and next to it was a panel of buttons. Reluctantly, I gathered my socks and strode over to examine it more carefully. It was labeled as thus:

() Going up?

() Yell through kitchen intercom.

() Here, Elevator! Good boy!

() Use super glue on elevator to hold it here.

My first thought. Did Sam write that last one? My second thought? The Kitchen has an intercom? I shrug a little, step inside, and then press the 'Going up?' button. It really wasn't that big of an elevator. 1-2 people could fit in it okay, but three might be uncomfortable. As soon as I shut the door, I started going up. Maybe it went sideways and I didn't realize it. Ah well. Mine was not to question why... It was merely to accept the supernatural that was now an active part of my life. In a way this was good. In other ways this was bad. I sighed as I waited, folding my socks into a ball and then out again, whistling to myself.

Apparently, Koenma had something against elevator music.

When I got upstairs, Yusuke and Kuwabara had surfaced. To take my mind off of my serious, deep, psychological, philosophical thoughts, I did the most sensical thing I could.

I challenged the two of them to a video game. What game, might you ask? What else, other than Super Smash Bros? Nothing says 'I own you!' like getting your rear thrown out of the stadium by girl, played by a girl. Oh yeah. Relishing in other people's suffering.

Kasumi must be rubbing off on me. And I'm doing all of this challenging while I'm drinking a glass of milk. And I'm doing this challenging (supposedly) all over a bag of potato chips.

She's definitely rubbing off on me. Maybe it's for the better.

* * *

**_Alrighty. Just a little more fun with the situation. Next chapter fast forwards to school. The plotline is coming...I think...Comments, Questions, things any of ya'll would like to see? I'm waaaaaay open to suggestions. Oh yeah, and I have a map of the basement, shoddily drawn in MS paint..XD_**

**_As for reviewers. Than kyou folks, especially people who were with me all through the first one. And you people who end up readign the 1st one straight throug hand then this one, A) be grateful you were not subjected to cliffies. And, B) I am so sorry you had to read all 35 chapters in one day, I do apologize. for you people who add the story to favs and stuff without reviewing. (makes face) it's a few seconds worth of typing, and I'll even respond in the next chapter..It's worth it, and it makes me so happy... please review?_**

**_Celedeen Takarona- So glad I have you hooked. It's a goal of mine. Thank you for your addiction to this story, as evident. _**

**_Shadow Ice Maiden- So does Sam. The bonus is Sam will probably sleep in it more than Hiei..XD Yea,h it's a nice room, I love all of the rooms...but hey, I designed them, so I better..XD_**

**_LoveAnime18- Indeed. I forget it's up so I don't write for it... Don't ya'll let me forget. As for the milk... no, not too healthy for cats, but they loooove it. I have a cat who will eat your icecream if your not careful...And she will lick your bowl clean. She normally doesn't like table food. _**

**_Anime-is-my-life- O-o How on earth did you get that image in your head? Do tell, I'm curious..._**

**_Darkside5454- I know, I know...but Kasumi has...issues... to put it mildly. She'll either get over it or she won't. _**

**_Hanyou- Hi, chicka! In any case..Fugaki demons re the ones that attacked Yusuke and Kuwa at the very beginning of the Saint Beasts Arc. Right before Hiei and Kurama show up. They don't have a name in the manga, but they do in the anime. I'll give you the key to Hiei's room if you want to risk it. Can't promise you'll come out intact... As for slapping her, yeah, someone oughta... Be my guest. _**

**_Ever- You don't need one of these. (wicked grin)_**

**_And, I have a few questions here. _**

**_First, in chapter 2/3, what answer did you get for that riddle Kasumi posed? Ever doens't get to answer this becuase he already knows the answer. And the other thing was, should I make Hiei wear the school uniform, given it's color..._**


	6. The Plot Thickens Part I

**_It's gonna seem a bit odd here at the beginning, but it's important, don't skip it. (nod) It might be missing periods, because my period button is 'tupid (nod again) _ **

* * *

**Eyes no longer blue, a figure peered over the railing into the electric fantasy spreading out beneath it. Neon blue, hot pink, and vibrant purple lights illuminated the scene. The pulsing heartbeat in the music seemed to make the entire place vibrate. A smile played over pale features. So many kine gathered in one place. And paying for the privilege and their intoxication.**

**Sanguine liquid in the glass swirled around the edges, leaving a rosy tinge on the edges. Such an elegant container, for an elegant person. The balcony he watched from was a personal haven. A safety precaution if one will. Not for the benefit of the willowy figure, but for the security of the club.**

**Yes, a club. A place of drinking and partying for the human kind. Of course, staffing was somewhat of a struggle. One couldn't risk any kind of an attack. A door opened and a ultraviolet light turned on. The figure whirled around with an urgency best reserved for life or death situations.**

**In the muted indigo light, the two figures were revealed. One male, one female. The male, as previously described, was tall, slender and graceful. He was dressed sharply in a black jacket with a well tailored pair of equally black pants. The shirt beneath the jacket? There was none. He had nothing to fear.**

**The woman who entered was willowy of frame. She wore a long stylish jacket, over what appeared to be a breezy skirt. Dark red curls fell down to her waist, and were restrained merely by a hat sat haphazardly upon her head. She had a scarf wrapped around her neck, and carried a gentle-like aura about her... and an official looking clipboard. A pencil or two were tucked behind her ear. Green eyes faded to black as she stood there in front of him. Her demeanor, however, was tenser as she stepped through the door.**

**His "office" was in a disarray He knew she had a problem with that, but manners and good breeding stopped her from instantly rushing forward to fix it all. He waved his hand to indicate she was free to fix it up. Better than having her stunned and utterly distracted due to it. On the plus side, obsessive compulsive people made good secretaries.**

**In an instant she had pounced. Seconds later, thanks to a blessed speed to their race, the desk was sparkling clean and completely organized. She was still leaning over the desk however, working on those last final touches. He couldn't resist. He stood behind her, and, playfully, let his hand pretend it was a goose. The woman bolted upright immediately, and turned around a little pink on her pale cheeks.**

**"Adrian!"**

**"Oh come now, Willow, it was all in good fun." She brandished the pencil she was holding in his face, causing him to back up a pace.**

**"Your idea of fun is VERY different from mine, Adrian. Keep it up and I'll-"**

**"Give in?" the look on his face was ridiculously arrogant and confident. If she didn't have the self control and good breeding she did, she might be persuaded to let him... but no.**

**"Hardly. I haven't given it up the last millennia. Why would I start now?" True, she boasted something very few ever had. Gods only had been able to say that. But was that what she was then?**

**"Because I'm handsome and charming, everything you want in a man. Come on, Wil, I know you're tempted." She was smoothing out her skirt, and gathering her clipboard again.**

**"Hardly. You lack enough creativity to impress me. Not to mention, you always bring out the worst in me."**

**Adrian laughed. "I doubt it. One of the kine down there with a long cut would bring out the worst. I just put you on edge. Wonder why..."**

**"Because you are a chauvinistic jerk who personally brought about the death of chivalry." Willow pulled a pair of half moon glasses out of her jacket and perched them on top of her nose.**

**"Will you get over that? Those tin cans didn't know when to stop, okay?" He almost seemed offended. But he was laughing, and his voice showed it.**

**"Whatever, Adrian. I didn't come up here to be harassed." She sat on the desk, where her rear was safely shielded from another attack.**

**"Who's harassing?"**

**"You are. Anyway, I'm here to let you know that the new barkeep arrived. You asked to be informed." Back to business, though one could see the pencil was moving in circles. The woman was doodling again.**

**"Yes. Since you hired them without my permission, input, or even knowing." He hadn't been happy about that. He headed over to the rail to peer over and directly toward the small but busy bar. His sharp eyes were able to pick out everything about the person, including the not so delicate curvature of their chest.**

**"A girl?" He seemed shocked, but sadly, pleased. Willow didn't like that tone.**

**"Yes. I left her file and her credentials on your desk, front and center, so you can't claim you lost it." She answered exasperatedly. "We close in ten minutes. People are already starting to leave. At least wait until the customers are gone before you go to harass her."**

**She didn't get an answer. That always made things fun. Shaking her head, Black eyes turned emerald again. Tugging nervously at her scarf, Willow stepped back out of the room, and shut the door, stopping on her way back downstairs to straighten the plaque on the door, reading:**

**'Keep Out, VIP Suite. Enter at own risk.'**

**All intruders were fairly warned.**

--

_Now what does this have to with anything? Not much. I just gave you the footage off the security camera I hijacked. Yes, I hijacked a camera. It wasn't that hard. Give me some credit. Technology is simple enough... Well, it is when you can control electricity. I didn't even have to go inside to do it. With a grin, I waited until the people all left, and then a bit longer until the guards began their rounds, and the doors were locked. _

_I sauntered up to the door, and shorted out the security system with a touch. Time to get back to what I was doing. Which, put simply, was getting a bit of revenge on an idiot of an immortal. The door opened silently, and I didn't hide my pleasure at my success. I strolled, literally through the halls and up the stairs. A guard passed by, but he was easy enough to shock into unconsciousness. Bet you guys didn't know I could do that. Not only can I make things out of thin air(mist really), but I do control electricity and I know how to use it well._

_I hardly repressed my smirk of delight as I climbed the stairs. I paused outside the door for a moment. I had to be on my toes. Adrian was fast, and I knew he was. I had a few seconds of danger before he'd be subdued. Those first seconds were crucial. I opened the door while simultaneously knocking. _

_No one was there. The lights were off, it was entirely empty. Not a soul, or a dead one for that matter. _

_Well if that don't take the cake. Annoyed, I go over to the rail and lean over to look at the empty floor below. Or, mostly empty. There he was. That wanderer was down at the bar, keeping his promise to Willow. He was hassling that poor new barkeep. Poor girl. I hope she had a strong will, or she would be having a very rough night. I hunkered down a little, just my tail hanging over the edge, and that barely. My eyes and ears were tuned in on the two figures below. Okay, Okay, so curiosity killed the cat. But I'm the cat demon. I don't die. _

_-_

**The poor girl behind the bar can't have been more than 19, and that was pushing it. If she was American, she wouldn't even be allowed to drink alcohol, and serving would be pushing it. She was leaning against the back counter, as far as is politely allowed. She was paying most of her attention to the glass in her hand, diligently cleaning it out. She wasn't even looking at him. Good girl. **

**Adrian wasn't daunted. The glass in front of him was almost empty. He'd likely be asking for a refill soon. That would go over well, but for now... "So, exactly how old are you."**

**The girl brushed part of her black and purple hair out of her eyes, and set aside her glass, picking up another one. "It's impolite to ask a woman her age."**

**"It's impolite to not make eye contact with someone who's talking to you." **

**There was a long pause, before she sighed. "18." Then she kept cleaning, still not making eye contact. One had to wonder if she knew why that was a good thing. He pressed forward. **

**"Your accent is nice. Where are you from?" She closed her eyes again, and picked up another glass. She was fairly reluctant to answer. **

**"You already know that." Her accent was funny. A mix between British or Australian, and something possibly Mediterranean. **

**"I'd like to hear it from you." **

**"...Greece." The girls dark eyes seemed to be half way closed, but her body was as active as ever. The entirety of her hair was black streaked with purple, pulled back into a half hearted French braid, tied off with what appeared to be speckled feathers. **

**"What part?"**

**"... ... ... Many different parts." Another glass, and another rag with it. **

**"Huh. When did you come to Japan?" The girls attire was rough and tumble. There were loops on her jeans that looked stretched as if there had been big wide things shoved into them multiple times. She was wearing a tank top and long gloves with no fingers. She looked interesting, but hardly Japanese. Not at all. She definitely screamed foreigner. Even the mark on her back I could see when she turned and her hair fell aside. **

**"Just recently." **

**"Why do you wear feathers in your hair?" This question visibly shocked her and she turned around, , bending down to get a tall bottle off a bottom shelf from the back, and without any effort at all, she popped the cork on the bottle and refilled his glass wit ha thick dark liquid. Perhaps she was trying to avoid the question. He repeated it, and she subconsciously tugged on it while looking off into space.**

**"I like the look."**

**He didn't seem too impressed with the answer, and he peered at the liquid in his glass. "You're a good guesser." Suddenly, the girl slammed her hand on the counter in front of him, leaning in close. **

**"It wasn't a guess. I knew that smell from the instant you sat down. And if you think I would have started my shift without acquainting myself with the contents of every bottle underneath these counters and behind the bar, you need to have a little bit more respect for bartenders." **

**Then she was back to cleaning glasses. Adrian was paying more attention to her now. "And what else do you know?" She laughed a little, still not looking at him. **

**"More than you think I do. Don't worry. I knew as soon as I walked in here, what kind of creatures hung out in here. I've got enough of my own secrets that I don't mind keeping a few more. Just step out of my life, and we'll be just fine, alright?"**

**Adrian was standing now, and looking a little pained. "What exactly are you?" **

**The girl turned to look at him with a sharp grin. "A scout of sorts. I guarantee you don't want to mess with me, and especially not with my superiors. I'm not a toy for you. Why don't you listen to your partner slash secretary? I'm not going to blow your cover, although it is tempting. I'm not your meal. And don't let me catch you having one or I might not be able to control myself."**

**One second he was there, and the next, Adrian was not down there. The girl looked quite happy that he was gone, but only in expression. Physically, she went right back to cleaning her glass. **

_-_

_I chuckled quietly. Now why couldn't I have that as my host? Someone with a lot of spunk like that.Unfortunately, my thoughts were a distraction. There was a voice behind me. "You've some nerve sitting there, eavesdropping from my office." _

_I hurried to my feet, and faced him. He didn't look too happy. I pressed my back against the rail and tipped my head to one side, smiling sweetly. _

_"Oh come now, is that really any way to talk to your godmother? I think I have the right to listen in on any conversation I very well choose, Adrian Animus."_

_His black eyes narrowed for a moment, before the light of recognition flashed in his eyes. _

_"Awww, it's Kasssssssummmmmmiiiiii. You know, I still remember stumbling over your name in Latin tongue."_

_"I know, it's a funny memory."_

_"Well, why are you here now? Didn't your 'Spirit Cops' catch you? I thought they killed you."_

_"Hah! Do you remember nothing? They never even toyed with the idea of killing me. No, I share a body with a little human. Perhaps you remember her."_

_"Remember her?" He seemed confused._

_"Yeah, little thing, dirty blonde hair in a messy pile, blue eyes and glasses, T-shirt and jeans... easily scared."_

_"Oh, yes... I remember... some idiot with a whip came and scared me off. I didn't even get a taste."_

_"Well, you should have controlled your hunger in the first place. Or at the very least when you snuck into her mind to steal information like her name, paid attention to the person screaming at you." I had my arms folded over my chest. I wasn't really thrilled. "You attacked me. You are lucky I don't beat you senseless child!"_

_He sighed at me, and took a seat in his chair, long limbed and relaxed. "Oh please, I wouldn't have hurt her too bad. She was so small I wouldn't have been able to take too much without hurting her. The worst... well, I suppose, I might have brought her back with me, depending on how good she tasted. Unfortunately, I never found out."_

_I came over and sat on his desk, twirling my hair between my fingers without looking at him. "Well, I need somewhere to come and chill at night. Away from my 'keepers'. I might be willing to make a deal."_

_He leaned forward, his hands on his knees. "Your blood for refuge?" I put my finger up. _

_"No, the deal with your mother. My blood is exempt from you. Your mother taught you that. Ancient magic binds you to that. But, I have the next best thing." I definitely had his attention now. "I have to drag Kassie with me. It'd be a simple matter to let you have a sip or two."_

_"How is that the next best thing?"_

_"Oh please. Do you really think she could possibly have been unaffected by the body switching? I promise you her blood will be a bit more than ordinary human. Perhaps not a ton, but, at least a little bit. If it isn't pleasing, you're off the hook. Do we have a deal?"_

_He grinned extending a hand. "Deal, see you...well, see you a lot more often."_

_"Indeed. I'll be here as soon as possible, but I still have to duck the idiots watching me. Time to scat back tonight. See you tomorrow, Adrian. Oh, and next time I maneuver my host to find you? Don't try to turn her into a meal." And with that I was out of the door and down the stairs, running back to the house that was my prison. _

* * *

**_So the first part was the footage Kasumi hijacked. The second part was Kasumi. After the - it's what she was observing. As for all mysteries concerning this chapter, all will be explained. Hey, ya'll wanted the plot. Introducing both of them at once here._**

**_--_**

**Emily_- I'd love to read yours when you get them up..xD Psst- I have other stories too... Go checker them (nods) Also, feel free to use it..xD I rather did like that line myself._**

**Destiny921_- I get my ideas through living. (nod-nod) List a prticular idea and I'll tell oyu where I got the idea..._**

**Darkside4545_- You wanted to know...(giggles) I was putting off the plot due to the somewhat unpleasantness of this... I do agree on the house. Wait till you see the addition to it later._**

**Rosekit Rei-_ Hey, thanks for popping in! As for how the thoughts run. Well, it's written as Kassie's thoughts. Italics are KAsumi's. Kasumi hears everything Kassie thinks. It seems to flow a little better for me, but, how about a poll? See below. Actually, the plotline started in...chapter four... it's just..obvious now..._**

**Love Anime 18-_ Doesn't it? Of course, as you'll find out, Those three equally beat each other up..._**

**Jasmine_- I'm not telling whether you got it right or not. That's my perogative (giggles) But I'd like bids from other people too. Thank you, however._**

**_--_**

**_Alright, who all finds the new system confusing, as pertaining to the Kasumi/Kassie conversations. Or is it clear enough? Vote via review please..._**


	7. Short skirts and Men without Shirts

I couldn't resist being taken to see things. So far, I'd walked the halls of Sarayashiki Junior High, Visited Genaki's temple, and the hospital. I'd also made some stops at Kuwabara's house. Yusuke wouldn't let me come to his, and Kurama wasn't being very willing either. Though I really would have liked to meet Shiori! It probably was for the best that I didn't. She'd probably notice right away...

Yes I was still struggling keeping my crush in check. Sadly, he didn't seem to be noticing. Yet, bit by bit, the start of school was approaching. I was shockingly reminded of this when my uniform arrive in the mail.

"Put it on, Kass!" Samantha, as encouraging as ever, pushed me into a closet, and waited with the rest. I'd honestly just gotten up, and the light was off in there. So I was groggy, and changing in the dark. In a small space. I'm could have sworn I heard laughing as I bumped into things, mainly, the walls.

Finally I somehow managed to get into it, and find the door handle. I was tying off the (pink) bow as I stepped inside. The laughing all ceased.

Now, I hadn't ever seen much of this uniform in the show, so, it was all new to me here. My skirt and the blazer were a darker pink, the same color as the uniform Kurama was often seen wearing, with the same sailor suit bow in the front as Keiko's uniform had. It was a bit lighter pink, and over the white shirt.

Other than the fact the color was not all that great, I only had one problem with it. I glanced down, and could see not just my knee, but half of my thighs too. I instantly felt exposed. Especially since they were all staring. Even Sam!

"Eek! I've never worn anything this short!"

Kurama cleared his throat as he looked away. "Well, actually..."

"Okay, except for the day Kasumi emerged. But I wasn't in my right mind then... I mean, just look at this..."

I looked back up to find Sen, Yusuke, and Kuwabara, even Hiei, still looking. I turned a little pink in the cheeks. I didn't even like wearing swimsuits! There was no way I could wear this places!

Suddenly, there was flashes of light in my eyes. I don't know when Botan had snuck in ,and I had no idea how she had managed to get a hold of a camera, or learn to wield it so that I couldn't see properly enough to defend myself.

" Quit it! I mean it! Ooo, I have to get a longer skirt. I don't have the legs for a skirt like this!"

I backed back into the closet, red as the uniform I was so embarrassed to be wearing. I didn't hear much for a while, until the brisk knocking of Sam met the door.

"Hand me the skirt, Kass. I'll get it adjusted."

Long ago, I learned not to question Samantha Kaos. I handed her the skirt, and then sat down in the closet, all ready to settled down and take a nap. It couldn't have been five minutes before the knocking came again, and the pink thing was handed back to me. I highly doubt there had been any change.

I slipped it on, and stepped back out.

The hem of the pleats now grazed the top of my knee. Instantly my body was much less relaxed, and I was much less nervous. Of course, it was still a skirt. I still despised it. But, at least it was a normal length skirt, and I could tolerate it. For the exact amount of time I had to be at school, and no more.

"How on earth...?"

"I took it to a friend of mine. She's a genius with weaving, and all that fabric stuff..."

And today, I learned do not doubt Samantha. At least it was easier knowing she wasn't human to handle all her superiorness at getting all this stuff down.

"T-Thanks...Now I've got to get out of this..."

Yusuke was laughing. "Why? Seriously Kass, you should wear a skirt more often."

"Say that again bozo and your hair will be blond tomorrow."

An odd threat, I know, but it was the first thing that came to mind. Samantha looked excited about it.

"Oh yeah? If my hair is blond, yours will be... Purple!"

I blinked. "Oh, really? Sweet!" So, having purple hair wasn't exactly a bad a thing as I thought. Actually, it made me feel warm and fuzzy. I'd always wanted purple hair...

"That...didn't have quite the effect I wanted it too..."

"Doubtless...now excuse me."

Back into the closet, I went. When I came out, I was happily in my pants. I was already formulating a plan to get out of wearing that skirt every day...But I would need Sam's help. And a good boy disguise.

--

Seeing what Botan did with her ill gotten gains only made me want to get out of a skirt even more. The pictures were framed and she'd handed one out to everyone, even me. She also told them to hide them where I couldn't find them.

Curses, she knew too much. I had been plotting the easiest way to destroy them. I was just figuring out how to get that many pictures in a Care Bear, and then how to get it into Hiei's room in such a way he'd torch it, when she said that. No chance of that now.

"Did I ever mention how much I hate skirts?" I murmur. I know she knew that. She had to!

"I still don't see why, you look-"

"That's it! You're blonde!" I growl. Yusuke had been warned.

"Right, whatever you say Kass..."

And that's when I forgot about getting pants. That's when I forgot about stealing pictures and tricking Hiei into burning them. That's when I plotted the death of Yusuke's dark hair.

It took a bit of effort on my part to convince Sam to help. Mainly, convincing her it was better to use dye than her powers. She got the dye, and I stayed up that night, putting it into his hair care bottle. Not his shampoo, he'd expect that. His conditioner, he'd notice when he got out. His hair gel. He'd put it in, and walk out of the bathroom. Now to just convince the others not to say anything...

Sen was easy, Kuwabara couldn't stop laughing, thoug hwe mad him shut up so he didn't wake Yusuke, and I'd left Sam with Hiei (better than sticking around) and now... Now I was telling Kurama.

My heart began to race as I approached the room. Surprisingly, my knock was timid. I had thought there would have been a little bit more time between my knock and the door opening. I hadn't had time to step back yet before the kitsune was right in front of me.

My blue eyes had nothing on his green ones. I couldn't break my gaze from him at all! I just stared, slightly open mouthed, as I'd started to say something before I was entranced. My mind flitted back through the past few months.

Kasumi and Youko had kissed. I had been shoved out, as had Kurama, in the middle of one of their kisses, but I didn't count that as a kiss. Making it very clear to me, that all this time, and we still hadn't... actually, I hadn't ever... not counting that half one. Given my wild period, I was surprised. Luckily, I believed in playing hard to get then...

"U-Uh...I... wanted to... tell you...t-that... Yusuke.."

"Ah. I suppose you don't want me to tell him that his hair is turning blonde?"

I nod, a bit dumbly. Geez, he needed witty conversation, and since he had seen my room that first time, I hadn't been able to provide that. If that didn't make me feel sub par...I put my gaze to the ground, and in the going, I realized...he wasn't wearing a shirt...my cheeks turned red. There was a towel over his shoulder. It looked like he was heading to the shower.

Shower? At 3 am? What? I took a step back...

"W-Where are you going?"

"Swimming." Was the answer. I tilt my head to one side. The thought of the pool made me brighten up quite a bit.

"I like swimming. Can I come?" I hadn't realized he did...

"I'm not going to stop you...I'll wait by the elevator."

I practically floated to my room. SWIMMING! I looooved swimming! And, I'd be in the pool with...well, lets not thing about that. I wasn't good at physical things, but goodness, I could swim. The water just seemed the rinse away my clumsiness, just for a little bit. Until I dried off.

I grabbed a towel from the linen closet, and my swimsuit, and hurried down. The ride down in the elevator was quiet. I was bouncing happily, and he was just quiet. As soon as we got there, I hurried into the non portal room and changed. This was probably the least I ever wore and felt comfortable in.

I stepped out carefully, pulling my hair back into a braid. It'd been growing steadily longer, and now was halfway down my back. I was a big fan of one piece swimsuits, and this one was cute and simple. It both bright blue, and navy blue, the colors swirling together in an almost spiral tie-dye. The straps however were a cheery silver.

I made the mistake of casting a glance at Kurama. He was staring intently at the bottom of the pool. Maybe there was something down there? I couldn't imagine anything could get in there. Moonlight was streaming in...

I didn't was it any time throwing myself into the water. When I came up for air, it was just the best feeling I'd gotten in a long time. I flipped over on my back, and just floated for a little while, only making a noise when I bumped into a wall. That did hurt, no matter what speed you were going at.

I hardly even registered that Kurama was even in here with me. I was just so delighted to be in the water again. That is, I didn't notice until I bumped into him. I straightened out, with a quick sorry. He...wasn't looking at me... He'd spent a lot of today not looking at me.

_He doesn't want to lead you on, Kassie._

Don't call me Kassie. What do you mean, lead me on?

_When Youko and I broke it off, the silvery one let it slip that the redhead's feelings for you were completely platonic. He cared, but he didn't love you anymore than Youko loved me._

My spirits fell. Suddenly, even the water wasn't that entertaining anymore. What could I really have expected? I was plain old Kassie. There wasn't much to say about it. Plain old Kassie, anything but plain Kurama. The funny thing is, I knew this from the start...but...I had hoped. I pushed the water out of my way, and scrambled out of the pool in my typical less than grateful manner.

"I-I'll see you in the morning."

I wrapped the towel around me, and pressed the 'Going up' button, the top of the five buttons. Wait. Five? I glanced down, and noticed there was a fifth button there, where there hadn't been before. Right under the superglue option was a blank button.

_Ooo! Push it! Push it!_

No... not while I'm just in my bathing suit... I mean, maybe when I'm in actual clothes next time.

Why hadn't Kurama mentioned it when we were coming down. Surely he noticed? Another way he was keeping it platonic? I hurried up to my room, changed out of my swimsuit, threw on an old T-shirt, and crawled under the covers, feeling, well, a little foolish.

* * *

**_Bet you didn't catch the plot advances... Sorry , my hard drive on my lappie crashed, so it took me a while to get this out._**


	8. What a Stroke of Bad Luck

The first day of school- darn it.

Now, in most cases the first day of school has an assembly. At least, that was my idea of school. Whether or not that was standard in Japan, was an entirely different matter than what actually matters. That we had one. Apparently, there was a bunch of new teachers, and other exchange students. At least I was able to hide in the audience...

No less than 12 people were up on the stand, some looking more uncomfortable that others, some just outright enjoying it. Kasumi was running a bored commentary in my head with her translation of the events and the dialogue fro mthe principal..

_"We would like to introduce our new vice principal, since the last had the unfortunate experience of getting struck by lightning. Kazuto-sensei should be back soon, but in the meantime, please give your respect to Ombrios-sensei." _

Dull clapping. Not just from me, but everyone. Ombrios-sensei had white curly hair, and a beard. His hair was white, but he looked young. Odd...but then again, my life was odd. The principal kept talking.

_"Also joining us as teachers for this year are Teleia-Sensei, Ombrios-sensei's wife. She will be teaching our new Parenting class. It also apparently functions as a Marital relations class."_ Teleia-sensei was a tall woman with her hair in a tight kind of severe bun, glaring at her husband who seemed to be taking it well.

A bit odd for a high school class.

_Well, hopefully you won't have to take it._

True. I don't really want to.

_"Enyo-sensei is our new gym teacher, as the last had a bad run in with a gang. Poor Kato-sensei will recover as well..."_ This teacher was strong looking even when sitting. When he stood, I was pretty darn sure his last career had been a body builder.

_"Pallas-sensei is the new Philosophy teacher. Hirochi-sensei is off in Athens, broadening his horizons."_ Pallas-sensei was a woman, nearly as tall as Enyo-sensei, and she looked almost as strong, thought I'd still be putting my money on Enyo-sensei. At least she managed to look wise as well.

_"Philia-sensei will be teaching our Health class, as the...well, Ai-sensei decided he needed a life change and he and his wife are off...on an island...in the middle of nowhere, last I checked."_ The poor guy cleared his throat and indicated to possibly the most beautiful person I personally had ever seen. She had gorgeous strawberry blonde hair that fell perfectly. Even in a pant suit, you couldn't miss the curves. And I'm a girl! A straight girl! Even I can tell she was gorgeous. I cast a glance at Hiei and Kurama. The former had a bored look on his face, while the latter...looked interested...

My heart shattered a little bit more. Kasumi, actually ,comforted me a bit, reminding me I already knew this...I sighed a little, looking back at the stage. This wasn't going to be as fun as I'd thought.

_"Vulcan-sensei is going to be teaching wood and metal shop. He requests that students in his classes are not afraid of fire,physical labor, or hard work."_ The man that stood up now was not near as beautiful as the woman next to him. He even seemed to be limping. But he certainly looked serious. I did see Hiei perk up a bit at the mention of fire. That calss was a big neon sign of "Stay Away" to me.

_"Bacchus-sensei will be teaching the theater class, and he encourages only lighthearted people to attend. Our own Satoshi-sensei is now having a fulfilling career on stage himself."_ The teacher that stood up now as very feminine looking, but, nothing compared to the kitsune. He was still clearly a guy, if only because of his open shirt and regal bow. His dark hair was long, and I did have to admit, he was my favorite one so far.

_"Chloe-sensei is our new Biology teacher, as Bukarai-sensei has retired and is now living his life out as a farmer of all things." _As Bacchus-sensei sat, a willowy woman stood, looking rather nice in her green dress. He blonde hair was as long as Philia-sensei's but...well, no one matched her entirely.

_"The last of our new teachers is Hippios-sensei. He'll be teaching the swimming class, as the Mizuto-sensei is currently busy training for the Iron Man Triathalon, for reasons unknown to us."_ A man who seemed to prefer blue stood, bowed quickly and then settled back down.

_"We would also like to welcome three students Logios, Acestor, and Cynthia. They are children of Ombrios-sensei."_ The three teens at the end shifted annoyed a little, especially as they cast glares in Bacchus-sensei's direction before they stood, bowed quickly and sat back down. The girl seemed to be pitching a fit about something, and the boy next to her, who sported golden hair just like her, seemed to be trying to calm her down. The boy on her other side was just tying his shoe. Then he was untying it, and tying it over again.

And I thought I lived with odd people...

_"On a side note, I would like to welcome Kassandra Zelane, a exchange student from the states. Please stand, Miss Zelane, so we can see you."_

I turned scarlet and was about to remain in my seat, until Hiei basically pushed my out of it. I stood, utterly embarrassed when they turned the lights on back where we were. As soon as I got a nod I was back in my chair. Everyone had been looking at me, especially the people on the stage. They were still looking at me. I guess, looking at each other got boring.

--

I had never been so glad to get of an auditorium before. Just as the red was coming out of my cheeks, I turned a corner and immediately went to hide behind Hiei and Kurama. There was a very angry blonde boy looking at the faces on all the girls...

"Ooo! I guess he finally got up and showered!"

We'd left the house early, to make it to school on time. Yusuke had still been asleep. Noooo longer...and I was soooooo busted...He spotted the boys, and I hurriedly ducked down. I heard his footsteps coming closer, but I waited until he asked

"Where is she?" in a very angry, and frustrated, I'm going to shoot her kind of voice. While they were either staring or answering him calmly, I started crawling off down the hall, weaving between legs with a quiet "Excuse me, thank you, coming through..." When I heard the cry of "There!" I scrambled to my feet and took off down the hall. I didn't really care, at the moment, if I got detention...I was too busy running.

"Kassie, you are in so much trouble when I get a hold of you!"

I turned my head to see Yusuke running after me, and stuck my tongue out at him. "Don't call me Kassie, and I warned you!!" As I turned back around I ran straight into Enyo-sensei. From this close up, I could tell he was young, about 23, and his skin was tan, and he had dark hair...dark hair that Yusuke was now missing.

"Running already, huh? Can't wait to see you run in class." As Yusuke caught up, and stood next to me, about ready to throw a punch, Enyo caught his hand easily, turned it away, and pushed, gently. Although Yusuke didn't hit the ground he did stumble back. "I don't think you go to this school kid, and I really think you shouldn't pick on poor girls like Kassandra here."

How did he know my name? Oh wait...duh...assembly. The same way I knew his. Yusuke mumbled annoyed, running his hand through his now blond hair, and glowered. "When you get home, Kass. When you get home."

I smile brightly, kinda glad I'd run into a teacher. It's hard to struggle when you're in a skirt. At home I'd have Kuwabara to help me. Yes, Kuwabara would defend me...

As Enyo kept on walking down the hall, I was a bit shocked, and not a very happy person when the next person to approach me was Philia-sensei.

"Ombrios-sensei asked me to give you your schedule, dearie!" Close up, it was even more apparent that he level of beauty was by far off the charts. Her blond hair was even glossy. She had a couple more schedules in her hand, and I turned to watch as she brushed past me, shoving my schedule into my hand. She went right toward Hiei and Kurama.

Unlike with me, after she handed them their schedule, she lingered, chatting with one hip out to the side and her arms folded under her chest. I growled a little, kind of crushing the paper in my hand. Again, it was Kasumi who calmed me, and then made it (kind of) all better. I sighed, calming myself, and running my hands through my hair. It had gotten frizzy. That was the first time my body had had such a physical reaction to anger. It was a bit surprising. Kasumi didn't seem fazed.

_It happens a lot to me..._

How do you handle it?

_Very carefully. I just smooth it down until all the electricity comes out of it._

And then what?

_I send it at the person who made me frizz._

Well, I already was running my hand through my hair. The static was clinging to my fingers as I pulled them away. I hurried ran my hand through the rest of my hair, until I had a charge about the size of baseball in my hand. I was cupping it in my hand, and blocking it from sight with my now straight again hair.

Like this?

_Yup. Just like that._ There was silence for a moment. _Look what she's doing now!_

Immediately I turned to look. And before I could stop it, the electricity flew out of my hand, and hit the bubbly, bouncy...and busty... teacher head on. In an instant her hair was just as frizzed as mine had been. And since hers was longer, it was a much more impressive sight. She squealed and then hurried away.

There was a look of pure shock on my face, my mouth wide open. I'd never used any kind of powers before! And now...wow...Unfortunately, Hiei and Kurama didn't look too happy about it. They were looking at me very disdainfully. The only thing I could do was bring my hands up on level with my ears in a hopeless 'I didn't do it' shrug. With an apologetic look on my face. They, especially Kurama, still looked at me as if I had intentionally done that. Hiei at least looked partially amused by it.

Okay, so I didn't really like the lady... didn't mean I was going to zap her... Biting my lip annoyed, and hurried patting down my hair before it could get all static-filled again, I started off down the hall, studying the schedule the bi...tty, old bitty had handed me...There I was, starting to think of her in unglowing terms...

_Biology, with Chloe-sensei, first_

_Philosophy with Pallas-sensei, second_

_LUNCH_

_Gym with Enyo-sensei, third_

_Swimming with Hippios-sensei, fourth_

_Theater with Bacchus-sensei, fifth_

Well, it didn't seem too bad, Biology, Philosphy, Gym... GYM!

For those of you read the first part of my interesting life, (right), you'll recall gym class was not my friend. In part, it was the teacher's thought, as he was a nutcase. But I don't do physical stuff well. My lungs and heart do not appreciate being overworked. Which in my case is anything more strenuous than breathing.

I was all set and happy until I read that there was a sixth period.

_Health with Philia-sensei._

I groaned and actually stopped to pound my head against the wall. Not with the crazy lady... Oh for heaven's sake. Didn't I have some say in my classes? Apparently not. Maybe I'd find a way to skip 3rd and 5th period...that'd be perfect...or, you know, if those two would just disappear and go make... well, I won't finish that.

See what this Philia lady does to me? She makes me mean, bitter, pissy, and a little perverted. The word jealous came to mind, but Kasumi squashed it for me.

_Just let it be. Pass the class, show her how smart you are...and besides, you can always subtly zap her again. _

Sadly, that made me smile. Okay, so that, after I got over the shock of what I'd accidentally done, had been kind of gratifying. Still, clearly it was time to move onto my next class.

* * *

**_I'm currently hiding in a corner, laughing, and waiting...If you know what I'm laughing about, and what I'm waiting for, feel free to put it in your reviews... No cheating(i.e. googling) Please review, I'd like thoughts.._**


	9. Welcome to Tartarus

**_(claps)Yay, Rei no Okami! You are definitely the closest to getting it! You got the right idea when you caught Bacchus. Now take all the other names literally, and I think you've got what I was laughing about. It isn't just what their names mean, dearie._**

**_In conjunction with the title, and this chapter, I highly, highly, expect that many others will get this. But kudos to Rei. In fact, Rei might just get a special honor… Like, choosing between two things I can't..I dun know, I'll think about it._**

**_Although, replacing Hiei's blade with a pink bubble wand is definitely an honorary mention. Darkside, that sounds more like Sam though. I'm nto likely to do things that could get me killed… I was hiding because I didn't want people to see the answer written all over my face._**

**_Yes, Yes… this is going to be quite a funny chapter…_**

* * *

**Welcome to Tartarus…Or at least the Underworld!**

I didn't have much to do, other than scramble to my next class, and pray that the Kurama and Hiei didn't have it. I had to come up with a plausible excuse for zapping Philia. I mean, yeah, she's a pompous prat, but…well, that's the thing they're supposed to prevent! And here on the first day…!

I thought I was lucky for a while. For once, Murphy's Law wasn't applying to me. Then, Kurama and Hiei walked through the door, one sitting on either side of me. I groaned in frustration, especially when Kurama wordlessly handed me a purple compact. It might look to others that I'd left it behind. Lowering my head in shame, I opened the mirror.

"Kassie!"

"Don't call me Kassie! What makes you think you can call me Kassie??"

"Whatever. I cannot believe what I'm hearing. You zapped a teacher?"

"Okay… um…." Kasumi, a little help here?

_Well, don't tell him she deserved it. Tell him you had an excess of static charge in your hand and accidentally directed it at the first thing you looked at. It just happened to be that b-_

"I somehow had a static charge in my hand, and accidentally discharged it at the first thing I looked at."

He relaxed. "Good. I'd expect that from Kasumi, but you… and it was just static?"

"Yessir. The only effect was…well, a bad hairday."

"Good. No harm done this time. Do NOT do it again, Kassandra."

The door opened, so my response was a little rushed. "Right, Right ,sure, whatever. The teacher just walked in, gotta go, bye!" The mirror clicked shut just as the door did the same.

The teacher was the willowy one. Her long blond hair seemed to be floating even without help from the wind, but I figured it must just be a light. She gave a happy, cheerful smile as she entered into the room.

"Such fertile minds, in the prime of your youth! Just like my daughter. She'll be here sometime this week or the next. I don't have much time with her before she leaves to stay with her uncle…" Such a change. She seemed a little sad. I actually felt a bit colder. Then it was passed. "Welcome to Biology!" The cheer was back in full force, and I was starting to wonder if she wasn't like me and Kurama with another side entirely. "I'm Chloe. I'm not picky about the sensei part. I look forward to an amazing semester of planting seeds in fresh young minds like yourself!"

I'll admit, my head tilted to one side, and I think I was staring at her a bit oddly. I mean, how many people were this happy? Or this moody?

_Maybe she's bipolar. _

Now that's just a scary thought.

"Ms. Zelane, how much do you know about this plant?"

When I yanked my attention back to the front of the room, she was holding back a stalk of a golden plant, and it was lilting to one side as if it's head was too heavy for it.

"It's just a strand, stalk, whatever, of wheat."

I was not prepared for her reaction.

"Wrong! This is the staple of all humanoid life, and many animal races as well. In fact, one could go so far as this is the staple of all life on earth! This is not just some plant! This is WHEAT! This has been the downfall of armies, and the pride of besieged cities. I give you, life in a biological form."

And, she put the glorified plant down on my desk.

"Here you are, my dear, that you might remember the most important thing in the universe is something small and simple. Be sure to put it in a vase when you get home."

She even gave me a plastic case to put it in so it didn't get damaged on my way home. The way Botan's portal work, maybe that was a good thing…But still… Even Kasumi was staring, and I was pretty sure I saw Hiei eyeing the door. In fact, the hall was looking like a better and better option.

"O-Okay, Chloe-sensei…."

"Please, dear, just Chloe…"

"Okay…"

When she turned her back and began talking about the structure of cells (A topic that hardly seemed at all correlated with wheat) I tossed the mirror into Kurama's lap, as subtly as I could manage. I leaned over to whisper, with my heart achingly pounding, out of sheer habit.

"Nut…job…"

And then I was sitting upright in my seat again, rather confused at the stares I'd been getting. I was surprised when he leaned back over, whispering just as quietly. That didn't seem like the attitude of someone who didn't care.

He's being polite.

Oh…right…duh…In any case, I received outright glares as he leaned toward me.

"I think she's just enthusiastic about her subject."

I stared at him oddly. I'd had enthusiastic Biology teachers before. I've been enthusiastic about Biology before. This lady was being enthusiastic about wheat. As if wheat was her life! Weeeeird….

--

When I walked into the room that Philosophy was supposed to be in, I wasa little surprised. There were no desks. Or at least, not desks in the normal sense of the word. There were, well, I'll call them bleachers. But, I think they were made of desks. You know, how if you set one desk upright, and another on it's side, how you can ALMOST push them together and have no gaps, if it weren't for the legs on the top? Well, um…

Judging by the pile of desks legs in the corner, I assumed Pallas-sensei had uh…removed that problem. As a result, it was about two feet tall, maybe two and a half, step of sorts, with another desk as the flat surface (I assumed it had all its legs) The best part, however, as when it went up another level, forming three different levels of stacked desks making stair like places to sit. Kurama and Hiei trailed me to the class, and of course, sat on either side of me again. Chairs had been removed from the room entirely, so we were sitting on the top of the bottom most step, though Hiei was casting glances to the upper reaches.

I would make a guess that he wouldn't be on this bottom tomorrow. The only reason he was down here was to keep me from accidentally zapping Pallas-sensei too. I didn't feel like explaining it was only Philia-sensei that was the problem.

The rest of the class came in, and I blinked a little as Pallas-sensei came in next. Though she looked regal enough, even with the feathered bracelet on one hand, and the intricate leafy one on the other, she still didn't look anywhere near ridiculous. She had these eyes that just seemed to always be watching you.

Even when she was looking at the other side of the room. The only thing I'd have to say that didn't look very dignified about her was she had a major case of hat head. Her hair was cut shorter than any of the other teachers, and it was a calm normal, reddish brown, and as it was a bout two inches long, it stuck out in all kinds of direction. As if she was always wearing a hat. Except now.

She looked so sedate. Perhaps that's why I jumped three feet above the desk when she slammed her hand on the wall, making a very loud thud. "Philosophy. Romans viewed is as a sign of softness, but the Athenians knew that without intellect, battles belonged to the side with the most in terms of numbers. They learned at the Battle of Salamis in 480 that with the proper strategy, even a meager force can take on a much greater one."

Pallas was pacing the floor now, grey eyes like an eagles on the confused students. "This class will be taught in a classic Athenian fashion, as a discussion. Failure to participate while produce a failure to pass. There will be no tests. In this class, the only right and wrong answers are when you forget who said it. When I ask an opinion, there is no wrong, as long as you are able to back your response. Is this understood?"

Several nods were given, and she took that as a go ahead. "Now, this is only temporary until I can get a proper amphitheater for us to study in. The desks are much noisier than stone, my preferred substance." While the class looked at each other, Pallas moved on, her expression softening.

"We will start with the History of Athens, so you can understand the reason this city became such a great city of learning and philosophy." I was surprised when she not only approached the whiteboard, but in seconds had a lovely image of an olive tree. The detail was extraordinary, for a marker image.

"When the city was young, it came time to choose the God that would rule it. Both Athena and Poseidon wanted to call it their city. Zeus, the coward that he was, refused to choose, because Poseidon was his brother, Athena was his daughter. So, he told the people to decide. They were to pick between the gifts that the gods would give."

She stepped away from the board, indicating to the elegant olive tree. "Athena gave this, a gift of infinite worth, because it provided, wood for building, food in the olives, and oil for cooking and burning. Poseidon offered this." She pulled out a drab brown marker and drew what appeared to be a horizontals stick with four legs and an angular head. There might have been a tail. "And this." Using a half dead blue (how could it be half dead already?) she drew three lines pointing upward. "A salt water fountain, good for nothing but temptation."

I was beginning to think she was a little biased.

"Whatever you do, don't ask Hippios-sensei about this. He sides that Poseidon should have been chosen. In any case, the people chose Athena, and named the city after her. The people of Athens knew that the hardwork that is required when one has horses was not their way. No, their path was lit by oil, long nights spent in intellectual debate. What better city for the creation of democracy?"

She put down the marker with a very pleased expression on her face. She was definitely biased.

--

Lunch. I was expecting the half baked American food. Instead I got an eye ful of food I didn't recognize, most of which looked good. Except the squid. I'd had squid once…It didn't settle well with my body. Unfortunately, I was out of luck. Calamari was the essential part of today's meal. I was assured it was just today.

I had been about to consign myself to going hungry, or broadening my culinary horizons past the limits of my gastrointestinal system, when Kurama sat next to me, pushing a small bag toward me. Confused, I opened it. I'd never been so happy to see a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in my life. And I didn't even like peanut butter and jelly sandwhichs.

"You. Are. A. Lifesaver!"

I couldn't help it. I was just so delighted that I'd be getting food after all I tackled him. Not hard, just enough that he rocked to one side, nearly spilling his lunch in the process. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

I was a little surprised to feel a hand on my shoulder pulling me away fro mhim. Some instinct kicked in and a clung even tighter, until not one, but two more hand helped. I struggled a little, trying to get my arm free. When I looked up, I blushed a little. The two had been the new boys. Logios and Acestor. I bit my lip, turning a little pink. Even though I didn't understand why they had pulled me off. The darkhaired boy, pointed subtly to a table across the way, where a group of girls were glaring something akin to daggers at me. They had nothing on Hiei, so I wasn't fazed. Yet, they looked like they were quite unhappy at me.

"They're jealous that you have the courage to touch Shuuichi-kun." The blonde boy chuckled. I glanced back over at them.

"I don't think it's courage so much as stupidity and lack of self control." I murmured. If Kurama heard, he ignored. However, these guys must have picked up fast, if they already knew (and remembered) what I'd clearly forgotten. Kurama was the most popular boy in school.

The two took a seat, across from me, the black haired one sitting closer to Hiei, while the blonde seemed to be avoiding him a bit more. In fact, the blonde seemed distracted. He was looking at me it seemed, eyes glazed over. In fact, it was making me a little uncomfortable. Just as I was about to ask him to stop before I sicced Hiei on him, He suddenly waved.

"Sister! Over here!"

I turned my head a bit to see a golden haired girl stroll across the room toward us, and she took a seat right next to me. She seemed to be looking at the food on her plate with disdain.

"What's wrong?" Her brother asked. She responded by glowering at him with blue eyes like his own.

"I don't like fish. And I especially don't like squid." Looking at her she looked like the track star who only ate health food, and fish was the leanest meat, therefore the only thing she ate. I laughed a little, cheering softly.

"Me neither. Luckily K-Shuuichi here anticipated that response and packed me a lunch. Luckily he's attentive. Wanna share?"

She looked at me a bit surprised. Her earrings were crescent moons, wrought in silver, And my gaze wandered down to the necklace she had on. It was on a leather tether (rhyme!) and on the center of it was silver arrow, facing down, already knocked in it's bow. Actually the string of the bow was part of the tether. I loved the design. She had on a leather bracelet that also had stags and bears and dogs etched into the hide.

"Got anything doesn't smell, taste, and look like it's been steeped in salt too long?" I iggled, pulling out a stick of beef jerky. I don't know how he figured out my favorites…but, he was good… "This do?"

The speed with which she snapped it out of my hand was enough of and answer. I unwrapped the sandwich and dug into that, actually enjoying it when the peanut butter stuck to the roof of my mouth. Just thinking about enjoying something that others feared so much that it had a name, (I couldn't remember it) made me laugh a little bit. When I got stares, I stopped to swallow, then explained.

The dark haired boy laughed louder than the blond, and the girl just rolled her eyes. When he recovered from laughing, he stuck his hand across the table. To my surprise he was wearing a bracelet too. A feather was hanging from it, just one. He had merry eyes, I noticed that. Very sly looking. Luckily, his eyes were green, not blue, or might have some problems.

"I'm Logios." I took his hand, intent on shaking it. Instead it got a kiss that made me turn a little pink. Habit made me glance over at Kurama. He was looking in the other direction. For sure, Kasumi must have been right.

"K-Kassandra."

The blonde boy suddenly looked simultaneously hurt and interested. "Really? Kassandra…I knew one once." The way his blue eye grew a little shadowed made me believe it hadn't been a good ending.

"I'm sorry. We tend to be a little crazy." He murmured something that wounded a lot like 'you have no idea' before the cheer returned to his eyes. He smiled, and I think, my head spun a bit. You know in movies where that smile flashes and you see that twinkle. I could have sworn I saw that there. It was enough to make me slightly dizzy. Dizzy enough I leaned back a little. A hand was behind my back, pulling me back up. When I looked to see who, no one seemed to be 'fessing up to it. Ah well, not that important.

The girl was hitting the boy, whacking him across the perfect golden curls. He blocked her next hit with nicely, but it made the necklace he was wearing bounce. It was a lot like his sister's, but the charm on his was a golden arrow, and off to one side of it there seemed to be a lyre of sorts. Maybe he liked music. "Shame on you, A-…Acestor, I'm gonna beat you down when we get home. Or better yet, I'll tell Mom."

"Oh come on, you know you're the favorite."

"That's cause I'm the useful and sensible one."

"Cynthia!"

"It's true." The girl murmured with her eyes closed, self righteously. "Have been since I was born."

Acestor collapsed into a mumbling fit I couldn't understand. I couldn't help myself. "You mean Teleia-sensei? She doesn't seem like she has favorites." All three of them looked like each other.

"No… She isn't our mother." I looked to Logios. He shook his head. "Sorry. Not mine either. We…belong more to our father than that lady… I'm preeetty sure she's tried to kill us more than once."

"Tried to keep us from being born…" Muttered Cynthia.

I decded right then I was gonna stay out of that mess. "Scary. Hey, where are you guys from? I think I dozed through that part of the assembly. It was too early to be up and functioning well."

I heard a snort from the fire demon, and taking a piece of calamari from Cynthia's tray, I flicked it at him. A pile of ash fell to his lap, earning him a swift kick to the leg. When I laughed, I got on too. I mumbled something along the lines of a defense to my innocence before it was time to get up and go.

I smiled brightly, and waved as I walked away. "See you guys later!"

While we were walking away, Logios stood up on the table, showing off the sandals he was wearing, even though school code said he couldn't. "We're from Greece!" I had already been half way across the room, but I still saw as the twins yanked him down, and Cynthia seemed to be focused on pounding his face in.

I turned back around whistling. Or trying to. It was kind of a strangled sound. "I like that girl."

A hand came into contact with the back of my head and I let out a loud 'Ow.'

Hiei was grinning at me. "That's for the squid."

"My pleasure." I grimaced as we continued on. I'd just remembered what class was next. And I wasn't happy about it. Kurama was suddenly looking at a piece of paper that had a doodle of mine on it. It kinda looked like my schedule. Wait…

"Give that back!"

"Only if you say please." Came the levelheaded remark that made me huff and stomp my foot.

"Fine. Please." The paper was immediately in my hand. I snatched it back. "Why'd you take it?"

"I wanted to confirm the rest of your schedule. We don't meet again until Philia-sensei's Health class."

I groaned. "Greeeaaaat. Three hours without demonic supervision, and without any kind of support at all. You realize my next class is gym? You guys met me in gym class. Well, kinda." I lowered my voice. "I don't do well in gym."

"You'll do fine. And, we're still in the building. We were supposed to have the same schedule, but I suppose it all got mixed up with the new teachers. You will have to behave in those classes, or I'll have to have Koenma transfer Hiei into them to keep an eye on you."

A sudden image of Hiei on stage, reciting the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet (he was in costume) to what I think was Sam made me laugh out loud. Outright, doubled over in laughter. Kurama didn't look too happy with me. Hiei was looking at me like I had some kidn of disease. I think I might. It's called goodmooditis. I only seem to get it when I was actually really hurt. Like right after that wild stage in my life, and when I got back from being kidnapped. Now I think it was just the effect of a crashing hope.

"I fail to see what is so funny."

"H-Hiei. A-Acting… R-R-Romeo…" Hiei didn't quite get it. That was probably a good thing. I kind of liked life… Sometimes… most of the time…Kurama however, did stop walking to chuckle. When he got over his little chuckle fit, he dropped me off at the wider doors to the gym, and with a nod, and another half chuckle as he looked at Hiei again, he left me to face my doom!

--

Maybe I was being melodramatic…I mean, I had to be…This guy couldn't be worse than Fecto. He had to be a little more observant. I pushed the door open and immediately something big and red hit me square in the glasses.

_Nice one, Kassie…_

Regrettably, the door hadn't shut yet, so when I hit the ground backwards, the door was starting to squeeze the parts of my body that was in it's path. I think it hurt more than the rubbery red thing. I heard murmuring above me, then a heavy scent of sweat, cologne, and…was that blood?

The smell of blood summoned up something inside me. That's funny, I'd never had such an odd reaction to the smell of blood before. I mentally ran over my arms and legs seeing if anything felt like it was bleeding. It didn't. A couple seconds had passed since I caught whiff of the metallic scent, before I bolted upright, sliding my glasses off my nose, and rubbing the bridge where the connection had pressed my glasses far too deep into my skin to be healthy.

"Ow…ow…ow…"

I'd been hit with balls before (I think my glasses are a secret magnet for them). Especially in the face. But this hurt like the dickens. I don't ever remembering it hurting so much before.

"Hey, Kassandra, you okay?" I opened my eyes to meet the blue ones of Acestor.

"Y-Yeah… I think I'll be okay…It happens all the time." His friend ,and half brother knelt next to him.

"You sure? I tried to tell Enyo it was a bad idea to throw balls at entering students, but he wasn't listening. "

"Alright you two vultures, move off." Cynthia pushed them both away, offering her hand to help me up. The startled boys parted like the Red Sea, and I was able to stand, albeit a little shakily. I'd never been hit that hard in my life, I decided. The teacher was standing right next to us. He'd been there the whole time.

"You okay, sweetheart?" Enyo-sensei had all the physical charm of a Brazillian soccer player/actor. Unfortunately, he actually seemed amused at my pain, not concerned. I heart two throats clear behind me, and Enyo gave a grin to the boys.

"You three, get back to your laps. Zelane, you need to get in there too…"

"B-But sir."

"No buts. GO!"

No choice there. I whimpered, falling in step beside Cynthia, who was taking this all at a leisurely pace. Logios looked like this was easy for him too. No fair. Acestor fell behind me, simply listening. When Cynthia spoke, she didn't even sound winded. That was not fair.

"So Kass, where's your family from?"

"Florida."

"Florida?"

"Yup."

"Really, where did your ancestors come from?"

"I'm… not…sure… All… over..I… guess…" This was my 6th lap, and I was pretty sure if I didn't get water soon I'd pass out. Logios was gone for a second ,but when I turned to look where he'd gone he was right back next to me. Odd…

"Here's some water. Don't pass out on us."

"T-Thanks." He kinda looked a bit like Hiei. Except, you know…nice…without being bothered to be…

"Where is all over?" Acestor asked. He sound a little bit more stressed than his sister.

"Wales… Ireland… I think a little bit from Greece…mostly England and a little bit of Italy though."

They nodded and finally, that whistle blew out. Even though it made me and Kasumi both cringe, it was still a relief to hear.

"Alright, you sissies. Girls on this side, boys on the other. It's dodgeball time."

I should have known it was coming. After all, he'd been standing there with a bag of those evil red balls this whole time. Cynthia cheered. I groaned, and leaned over, my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath all the way. When I looked up, both Acestor and Logios were behind me. I gave them a funny look, and then scampered off to the girls side of the court.

Twenty minutes later I was miserable. Completely, totally miserable. The few times I'd gotten a ball, my aim had been so bad, they didn't even ask me if I wanted it anymore. There was a reason I rejected it in the first place.

_Other than that you really don't have the guts to hurt people by connecting. _

Not everyone can be as mean as you.

_Riiight. Just keep telling yourself that. One day you'll see I'm not mean. I'm doing all of this for your safety and protection. _

Whatever you say, Kasumi. In any case, it was down to five girls. Now four… three…two… It was my and Cynthia. She had a kind of scary glitter in her eye as she made an impressive throw that got not one, but two boys out in one hit. I could never have done it.

I was surprised when Enyo-sensei blew the whistle on it. After a few more shrill noises, Cynthia trudged off the court mumbling very, very annoyed and probably nasty words about Enyo-sensei under her breath.

Just me… And all the balls were on the other side of the court. I gulped, and got ready to cringe. Several of the boys already had their arms back ready to throw. Just waiting on me to close my eyes. Logios and Acestor didn't have a ball, or they'd probably be getting ready to throw one too.

And then the barrage began. Several bounced harmlessly on the court next to me. I had to duck a couple. And then I sat there, waiting for more. No more came. I looked at my assailants, and realized all the balls were on my side now.

"Just throw them!!" Cynthia called before I heard a dull clunk. She was nursing her head while glaring at Enyo. Yet, her advice made sense. I mean, if I just threw them all one after the other one of them would hit one. I gathered a couple balls, and threw them all at once, then gathered more. When I looked back over, the numbers had surprisingly thinned. Not by much, but I was getting a few shocked and annoyed glances from the boys that were trudging off the court. Then a big red ball hit me right in the chest. I didn't have much by way of a buffer. I was on the ground again, and I heard a cheer from the other side of the room.

"Ugh… I really…really… don't like..."

"That was great! Even I didn't expect you to actually hit anyone with those!" Cynthia was laughing happily, before she pulled me to my feet, walking me out of the class with an arm around my shoulder. If Enyo had wanted to say anything to me, he missed the chance.

"What you got next, Kass?" She asked.

I smiled a little weakly. "Swimming."

She grinned widely. "I think you'll do just fine in that class. You seem like a swimmer to me. Logios has that class, but I've got to go back and yell at my brother for taking me out of the game." And, she was gone.

Brother? Was she talking about Enyo? She had to be. Acestor hadn't done anything to that extent. I began to realize their family tree was quite a bit more twisted than I thought.

--

I've mentioned how I love the feel of being a swimsuits? The school one wasn't any different, although I do prefer mine. Most of the kids were standings in clumps talking. I couldn't resist. I was sitting on the edge of the pool, dangling my feet in the water. Better than standing.

Someone came up behind me, putting his hands on my shoulders. Instinct supplied an image of a red head with green eyes behind the affectionate gesture. I guess I shouldn't have been too disappointed when it was Logios.

"Something I can help you with?" I wasn't quite over my last crush, and I didn't need another trying to nose in. I could definitely fall for Logios. Even if it sounded like a name from Lord of the Rings.

"Just wanted to let you know how tempting it is…" He gave my bare shoulders a soft shove, barely moving them. "…to push you in right now."

My fingers tightened on the edge of the pool. "You wouldn't."

He laughed, bending down to whisper in my ear. "Wouldn't I?" And then the pressure came for real, and no matter how good my grip on the grainy stone, I went head over heels into the water. Luckily, I didn't have a problem coming back up. The biggest problem I had was when I did come back up. There was a teacher in a pair of dark blue swim trunks, holding up Logios in his matching pair by the arm, away from the edge.

I was sooooo busted. I'd said that a lot lately…

"Well, Ms. Zelane, since you are already wet thanks to Trickster here." Logios was a little pink as Hippios-sensei added that to him, "Lets see what your time is. One lap around the perimeter." I barely had time to get against the edge before the man with the white hair, though no beard like the new vice principal's, called out go.

I didn't think while I swam. I just swam. I'm unaware of what stroke I use, so don't ask. I will tell you that when I surfaced for air that last time, The twinkling blue eyes of the teacher were there. I could see he had a necklace on, surfer style hemp, with a heavy iron anchor. No…wait, it wasn't an anchor. It was a trident.

"Well, Ms. Zelane, you are a regular fish. You just beat the school record by on whole millisecond."

It took a while for what he said to register. When it did, I scrambled out of the pool blushing. I turned around with a towel wrapped around me just in time to see Hippios push Logios into the water.

"Your turn kid."

--

My hair was still wet when I walked into the theater. Cynthia flagged me down. "You don't want to miss this."

The teacher was standing on the stage, a canteen in his hand, and he was drinking a bit greedily out of it. That done, Bacchus-sensei leaned against a set content for a while. When he finally moved, he was vivid, Alive. I could see his dark eyes were bright, and his hair reflected the stage lights like a mirror almost.

"Rage. A man of war. The Iliad, The Aeneid. Two very powerful Greek and Roman epics. Yet, to be the most powerful, and I should know, is the Orestes. It starts with Agamemnon, and ends the Eumenides. It is a tale, first and foremost about justice." Cynthia mumbled something next to me, but I didn't catch it. I was entranced by the boy on the stag.e He barely looked older than Logios and Acestor.

"The theater is a place for fun and relaxation, no matter how serious the subject matter. As such, you will find a water cooler on the back of the stage. There are no cups. What are the fun in cups? No, just slip you head under the tap and push. I do beg of you not to drink too much at a time. Horrible cramps, it gives you, acting after drinking a little too much from the cooler. I trust that we will have a marvelous time here in the theater." There was rustling behind me where Logios and Acestor were sitting, and a little bit of whispering between them.

"Now, do we have any people named Agamemnon here? No? What about Clymenestra? Noooo? Do we have an Aegisthus? Nooo… A Cassandra?" I wasn't going to raise my hand, but Cynthia raised it for me. I turned a little pink as the (undeniably cute) teacher turned his gaze our direction. "So we doooo have one. Well, that's one role, sadly a tragic one. Any people want to volunteer?"

And, the attention was off me. I kind of wanted to strangle Cynthia after that. But she insisted it was the honest thing to do. She deferred to her brother on that, who agreed. I sighed, relinquishing. Hermes offered a bright spot on it. At least I got to be a character people liked, and sympathized. He mentioned something about not minding being Agamemnon, earning him a smack from Cynthia.

I made a note to look up the paly when I got home. The rest of the class was spent, by me anyway, in half sleeping. I wasn't happy when I had to get up, and trudge my way into the class taught by call girl's queen.

--

I intentionally sat in a back corner. I didn't want to be noticed in this class. I still ended up with a Fire demon next to me, and a fox in front of me though. I couldn't ditch them…Not that I really wanted to… but you know, I didn't want them to draw attention to me…And Shuuichi drew attention, and so did the short kid with the headband on.

The teacher pranced on in, every curl perfect, her pant suit looking seductive just because it wasn't buttoned, and I'm pretty sure she wasn't wearing a shirt underneath it. She turned her green eyes on the class, leaned her arms against her desk and practically purred out her greeting.

"Welcome to Health I'm glad so many of you chose to take this ever important class." Iglanced around. Every seat was full. And I was pretty sure that I was one of the few girls in the class. I did a quick check, tuning out Philia-sensei. Boy, boy ,boy. Gi-no, just a boy with long hair. I couldn't believe this. I WAS the only girl in the class! This had to be a freak accident that I even ended up in this class…

"It's very important that we keep out bodies healthy to keep us in good condition so we can…perform at our very best." I peeked my head around to get a glance of Kurama's expression. He was taking it all in. In retrospect, I should have kept my head hidden. She spotted me.

"Oh, Kassie! Please come forward."

I had never hated hearing my name so much. But I dare not refuse a teacher, or correct her right now. If she did it again, I would however. I trudged to the front of the class.

"Now, I had to request that in each class I had one girl. For some reason, boys come flocking to my class like flies to honey."

_No kidding you little w-_

Kasumi!

_I was gonna say witch…_

Right.

"As using myself as an example of female anatomy and how it works would be in bad taste, I'll be using Kassie instead."

I had intended to give her a chewing out about my name. Unfortunately, I was too busy wishing I could disappear into the earth to do that.

"Not today of course, but when new get into my favorite part of Health, Kassie is the lucky one who gets to be the female example. You can sit down now, dear."

I practically lunged away. The teacher simply went back to a lecture o nthe importance of a healthy body, while I tried to slink away into nothing. What I needed was Sam. I spent the rest of the day with my face buried under my hair, too embarrassed to even lift myhead until class was dismissed.

It took every ounce of control I had to just walk out the door, and to not smooth my hair down right there, and zap her. Yes, my hair was getting a little staicy again. Actually, I already had a charge the size of a golf ball. I checked, unable to control myself, to make sure she was still in the room. When Kurama and Hiei were still walking forward,d I slipped back into the room, aimed every inch of annoyance I had at her, and watched as her hair clung together in a straight stick by the static. The nI scrambled back out into the hall, falling in step behind them.

I wouldn't be telling them.

_Good girl! You shouldn't tell them anything._

I'm starting to think you're right… If they tell Koenma we'll both be in trouble. What no one knows, doesn't hurt them…

_I think I underestimated you Kassie._

Kass.


	10. Revelations 1 and 2

**_Sorry for the delay. I had finals. Now I need to explain something important. This chapter introduces another character of mine. Saiko is from another fic of mine. Yusuke's little Saiko. It is an incomplete fic. The events will be alluded to, and you'll basically know the basics of the fic in here. What you NEED to know will be given here. For extra information, read what's in the fic first, then PM for the rest of it. Saiko has a purpose, alright?? Believe me…_**

**_For the reviewer purple eyed neko youkai, who mentioned you want to punch Kasumi. You aren't alone. Most people do… -I- want to punch her and she's MY character… I love Sam..XD she is so bonkers…_**

**_Fallenfaeangel- Kassie does need love… She'll get there..eventually…I wish I could say they'll be getting together soon, but I'm afraid this chapter kinda… well… (hides) I remind you, I believe in happy endings…_**

**_Shadow Ice Maiden- (claps) wee-hee! You gots it too! The references will only get clearer…_**

**_Darkside- Wow… I think that last chapter made you mad… (chuckles) In any case, I don't think anyone likes that teacher… Well, maybe the boys… As for Kurama's behavior,. I would like to point out that because this is all from Kassie's view, it can get very skewed. If it was from Kurama's view, you'd be getting a very different story. Thanks for reminding me about the youko appearance. I think that'll be next chapter…(shifts) I think the next chapter will be from Kurama's point of view, for at least part of it._**

**_Rei no okami- Isn't it getting fun now?? Next chapter may have a little bit, but it won't be until the chapter after that that we get back to the nutcases. And in the third update after this, we will see a LOT of them… At least…that's the current plan._**

**_Oh..I drew pictures of Saiko, Kassie, Kasumi, and Sam… Hopefully, I can find where I stashed them…They'll be up soonish…_**

**_--_**

So, I kinda sorta tried to be quiet and not show how entirely annoyed I was at the stuuuupid Health teacher. Actually, I was throwing a fit, but I was trying to do it quietly. And inconspicuously too! I got distracted though. The portal ride was fairly uneventful. It seems my attack had gone unnoticed. Good.

As soon as I opened the door, I was getting attacked. Mostly in the form of a psycho with blond hair. I squealed a little, immediately rolling over and trying to protect myself. I closed my eyes I called for help from the easiest and simplest source I could think of.

"KUWABARA! YUSUKE IS TRYING TO HIT ME!"

Bingo. I heard his footsteps on the stairs, but even before they were done, I felt someone else pull him off of me. I was still covering my face, so I couldn't see anything. The wrestling was all I heard. It was enough. I wasn't moving until it stopped.

"Kurama, let go! She bleached my hair! I'm gonna bash her face in!"

"No. You won't."

"Oh? Won't I? I'd like to see you stop me for long! She's not gonna move for a week when I get done with her!!"

I huffed a little annoyed. "Then I'll miss school. And…wait…no, I wouldn't mind that…" No Philia if I'm not there.

"Kass!"

"What?"

No response. Kuwabara had gotten down here now, and he was sizing up the situation, laughing and trying to find a way to solve the problem. After all, he couldn't let me be beat up by Yusuke, but Yusuke was well contained at the moment by Kurama. Kasumi chuckled.

_Duty demands he not let you get hurt. _

Are you talking about Kuwabara, or Kurama?

_Both._

I roll my eyes a little, just as I hear a war yell from the tow-headed Yusuke, and feel the air rush. I felt him land on me again, and grab my hair roughly. Kuwabara immediately protested. It was going to turn into a three way wrestling match, with me in the middle of it! Nooot good! I'd be the one hurt most, I promise you that!

There was a knock on the door, and a voice called in that I didn't recognize. I'd never heard it before. It was light, but I think it was male. "Yusuke! Open up now! And don't make up any excuses!" All the male heads in the room jerked up. Two of them squeaked. Yusuke and Kuwabara were both out of sight. Kurama was on his feet, watching the door somewhat warily.

I was just staring at the door. Who was it that could make them flee?! Like nobody's business?! The knocking came again.

"Yusuke, you dolt. If you don't open this door, I'll break it down."

The knocking grew more insistent. I heard a hiss from Yusuke, as he tried to cover his head. "Don't open it!"

Now I was curious. I almost went and opened the door myself. If Samantha hadn't appeared out of nowhere and plopped herself down in front of the door.

"Well, if you aren't going to open it, I will!"

Yusuke growled. "No! Don't open it! S-"

She didn't have a chance. The door flew off its hinges, and hit the floor almost 6 feet from the door. In the doorway, sporting the magenta uniform I'd seen all day on Kurama, was the most feminine looking boy I'd ever seen. And that included Kurama. His frame was just as slight as the fox's, but the boy in the door was shorter. Which I suppose made him more feminine. But the face was basically a softer version of Yusuke's. Thinner too… The hair on this boy was both light and dark brown. Like if you mixed Atsuko's hair and Yusuke's. I could only see fringes of it under the big black hat he was wearing. One of those puffy ones you see girls wearing a lot. It might have helped the boy's femininity case. Then again, maybe that was bad.

The boy's gaze was around the corner where Yusuke was hiding.

"Brother, get out here."

There was some mumbling before Yusuke appeared from around the corner. Kuwabara too surfaced, with pink on his cheeks.

"Hi Saiko."

The boy, Saiko apparently, folded his arms. "Don't 'Hi Saiko' me. You go to America. You don't come back for 6 months. I expect this. I do not expect you to move into this manor! Mother is not happy."

Yusuke collapsed into grumbling. Kurama looked from Saiko to me, and then back again. "Saiko, this is Kassandra, Kassandra, this is S-"

The boy raised a hand to silence him. "I can introduce myself, kitsune. Saiko Urameshi. That cowering…" He cast another glance at Yusuke, chuckling a little. It was a light, almost musical sound. "blonde…" He nearly spit the word out. "Is my brother."

Yusuke turned a little pink, but Saiko seemed unfazed. Kurama was quiet. He seemed a little embarrassed, actually. But then again, he hardly ever seems embarrassed about anything. I must be interpreting it wrong.

I nodded. "Alright, I didn't know Yusuke had any siblings."

Saiko scoffed at me. "Half sibling. We share a mother." Saiko seemed to be one of few words. I shift a little. My nerves are stressed. I was about ready to fall into a puddle. Why was I so freaked out?? I'm blaming Philia. And then, I'm blaming Kasumi.

_What?_

Nevermind. Mostly, I'm blaming Philia. However, I think this whole thing struggling with my own emotions, was what was driving me crazy. I wasn't sure how much longer I could put up with being attacked by sadness every time I caught sight of a long red lock.

"I-I-I'm go-onna go s-swimming…"

I hadn't told him about swimming class today. I didn't feel like explaining the glowing praise of Hippios-sensei. Instead, I was trying to slip over to the elevator. I got waylaid by Samantha and carried off to…Hiei's room? What the-?

"Sam…I don't think I'm welcome in here." And judging by the way I'm getting glares from the red eyed demon, I needed to leave.

Sam shrugged. "Hiei is tolerant. I want to know about the new teachers Hiei mentioned!"

I glared at him, but not hard. I shrugged and began talking about the new teachers. It was okay until I started mentioning names. Samantha got a funny look on her face, but it passed easily, as if she was dispersing a thought. That's not hard to believe. After all, she was Samantha.

"You're gonna have to bring me pictures. Especially pictures of that health teacher. I want to hate her too."

"Small problem. I don't have a camera."

"What do you mean? You got one for Christmas last year."

"Oh… that..I lost it…And I never figured out how to use it."

Samantha sighed, holding out her hand, and handing me the camera that appeared in it. "Point, click. It isn't complicated…"

I take the camera with a funny look. "If you say so…" Silence fell for a few mintues, driving me crazy. It was broken by the huff from the bed.

"Do you mind? I have something I'd like to discuss with Sam." One look at the expression and Sam's face, and the way those two pairs of eyes met? Whoooo boy..I don't think I'd ever scrambled out of there soooooo fast.

Maybe I wouldn't go to the pool… No, I think I'd go to my room. After all, there was that lovely pool in there too… More for soaking than swimming. Maybe that'd be for the best. As I walk past the stair,s voices floated upward.

"I don't understand how you all come home with a human in tow?"

"She's just as human as I am, Saiko." That calm voice made my heart flutter before I stopped it cold.

A scoff. I could hear it even up a flight of stairs. "Great. Even better."

"Where've you been, eh?" Yusuke seemed to be having fun.

"Just got back from the States myself. I was in Seattle, checking out another prospect."

"Did you find it?" Kurama again.

"Yeah. His name was Zachary Kiriki. Ring any bells?"

Hey..I knew a Zachary…

"Not at all." Yusuke added with the same level of sarcasm his sibling had.

"We're still investigating his type. But we know he had connections with the demon you guys were after."

It was my Zach! No way! He was a demon too? I groaned quietly from my spot at the top of the stairs. Why me? Why, why, me? Now where did they take Zach? Poooor Zachie… Well, on the plus sid,e maybe I'd get to see him!

"Very interesting."

"Look, you guys better not slip my secret to the new girl."

"We won't."

"You better not, or you WILL be sorry."

The next thing I heard was the door slam. Apparently Saiko Urameshi was gone. I waited. Someone would be coming upstairs soon enough. And then I'd get answers. Answers as to why I had never heard of any Saiko Urameshi in the show. At all. I don't get it. How could a character appear out of nowhere!? After hearing another person open and shut the front door (Yusuke?), Soft footsteps came up the stairs. I tried not to cringe when I saw it was Kurama. I think that was why I couldn't speak exactly right. Maybe it was just the look in his emerald eyes that blew me away. He seemed sad…

"K-Kurama… where… w-where did Saiko...?"

He tilted his head to one side. "Ah. You want to know why Saiko isn't in the show, hmm? And where Saiko came in to the story?" I nod startled. Then again, I shouldn't be. He –was- Kurama after all. Why did that solve all the world's problems? I was brought back to reality by a soft touch on my arm. He was close again. Right next to me. Why did knowing I couldn't have him make me want to be closer to him anyway? Knowing that he only cared for me as a friend… Oh for heaven's sake, I needed to get myself under control.

"Come this way. It will be easier to speak when we aren't standing on the stairs."

I followed him with not another thought. Maybe I should have thought about it BEFORE I was already in his room, watching as he sat on his bed and turned those luminous green eyes on me.

"Saiko and Kenji moved in with Atsuko and Yusuke not long after Hiei, Gouki and I stole the items, but before Yusuke found us." I blinked my eyes.

"But why… wouldn't I have seen?"

"Saiko isn't an official member of our team. In fact, Saiko doesn't even go on most missions. After nearly getting killed by Gouki, Saiko was already apprenticed to Genkai before the tournament began. Genkai's techniques have used beyond combat, and Saiko was her first choice, but Saiko had no interest in learning the combat aspect, only the healing. That's why the tournament was so combat based. Saiko also tagged along to Maze Castle. In all those images that you see of us running, Saiko was lagging behind. Saiko is an asthmatic. Only when there is music pounding can Saiko run without passing out. Has to do with the powers in that thin frame. In any case, Saiko was snatched by Suzaku in order to further infuriate Yusuke and the rest of us. Oh. And Saiko was also temporarily trapped by Genbu and Seiryu. During the fight with Byakko we found some interesting things out about Saiko's powers. They're sound related. So the scream of Byakko was making Saiko almost pass out…"

I was completely content to just listen to him talk. It took me a little time, but slowly during the explanation I'd moved over to his bed and was having a good time sitting on it and listening as he continued.

"Once Maze castle was behind us, Saiko took a break off of the Rescue Yukina saga. Mostly because if we knew once Saiko was involved…well, Saiko would probably end up in a cell next to her. Toguro showed a special interest in Saiko. Like he knew things we didn't. In any case, Saiko hated Toguro on sight. Toguro thought that Saiko would be a good addition to team Toguro. Apparently, he thought a healer would be a fun to keep around. We think he knew about Saiko's secret. Saiko's relationship to Yusuke also paints a target. "

I continue to listen carefully, leaning forward to help me focus. On the words. This was reaaally odd.

"During the tournament itself, Saiko was our designated healer, came and stayed on Hanging Neck island with the rest of us. We made Saiko stay in the hotel room because of Toguro's interest. We had hoped it'd be safe. We came back one night and Saiko was out cold. Stayed that way until the end. As for the section you call Chapter Black… Saiko got a little vengeful, helped us from the background to get Yusuke back. Saiko did it from the way background, despite wanting to just kick these people. In any case, after that, Saiko decided to retreat. Stepped out of the whole chapter for personal safety. I have yet to figure out what is meant entirely by that. More importantly, I believe Saiko was avoiding Sensui. If the vibes between Toguro and Asiko were bad, the ones between Saiko and Sensui were horrible. Saiko caught sight of him when they kidnapped Kuwabara. Saiko didn't help, just stood there fuming. Apparently, he gave off bad vibes. Really made Saiko angry. "

He seemed to contemplate that for a moment before continuing.

"For the three Kings tournament, Saiko came and watched. No participation. Even though Raizen is part of Saiko's ancestry as well, Saiko decided there was no need for both of them to try for the title. Saiko's top priority is independence, the fight for the right to fight, not so much for a purpose. After that, Saiko didn't give up working for Koenma. Saiko was raised in America, and makes a great go between. More of a diplomat than Yusuke could ever be..in most situations…Occasionally Saiko's temper can get out of control. "

I stared at the wall, the lovely green wall. Like the eyes of the red head next to me. When I turned to make a comment, those green eyes were the first thing I saw. So close to me. I turned a little pink.

"Interesting story… So, does Saiko have…have a…have a girlfriend too?"

Kurama eyes turned dark for a brief moment, but it sounded as if he was almost stifling a chuckle. "Even if Saiko cared, it has been made very clear that Saiko's preference is for boys." Why did he sound odd as he said that. As if there was something bad about that? I didn't have anything against homo-sexuals. I was kind of neutral on the whole thing. In any case, it was kind of odd for that shadow on his features.

"So that's Saiko…why didn't…why didn't… we hear anything about Saiko in the show?" Had to distract myself. Those gorgeous eyes…

"Koenma edited Saiko out to keep the operation undercover. It wouldn't do to have people recognizing Saiko when Saiko's still on the force."

"Ah."

A hand on my shoulder. Magenta sleeved. I glanced at it, and then made a small mistake. I looked up into those eyes. A lump formed in my throat as I remembered the time Kasumi and Youko had switched out mid kiss. I hadn't had much time to think about the feelings then. Now, I kind of wanted to feel that now. When it was MY choice, and MY actions! Why now? When I knew he didn't think of me that way.

But we were so close…inches away. The shadow in his eyes was gone now. I gulped down the lump as he spoke. "Kassie." I didn't correct him, even though I should have. "I wanted to talk to you about why I was so determined to get you away from Yukio."

And that was it. The confession would come from him. Even Kasumi agreed with me, with a smug look. I stopped him and looked away, the magic of the moment gone.

"Kasumi told me. I understand. I'm a charge, nothing more." I surprised myself. I shrugged off his hand, and even managed to stand, though I hesitated to move to the door. "Just a friend, nothing more." I looked at him for only two seconds, and it looked a little like he was shocked. Must be because I already knew.

And now I left. I walked out of there, shutting the door and leaning on it, unable to take another step. I had held out a little bit of hope. That Kasumi was just being mean. Now I held back tears as I climbed the stairs and threw myself into my room.

This had not been a good day.

* * *

**_Now, lets see how good you people are. Dun dun dun... what's Saiko's secret?_**


	11. Figuring it out

**_This chapter is entirely from Kuram's point of view. It uses the same system as the Kassie's do. itlics is the demon, normal is the. _**

**_Purple and Darkside now know Saiko's secret! Congrats._**

**_Saiko: What?_**

**_Now run for it!!_**

**_Saiko: Neko, you little twit._**

**_Meep! (scrambles away) enjoy the chapter!!_**

* * *

Today hadn't been a very good day. I close my eyes and lean against the headboard. How on earth had that gone horribly, horribly, wrong? Inside my head, Youko was screaming, pitching a royal fit. And I mean royal. He was seated elegantly on a chair, legs crossed, and his expression restless and fuming endlessly. Very dignified. He'd had worse ones. More…violent ones. At least he wasn't throwing anything around.

_That idiot wench! How dare she say things like that! Poisoning a poor impressionable mind like that! Kassie doesn't know any better, she's believing the lying little cat demon! How can she do that?!_

Youko stood now, pacing with his clothes swaying on each turn.

_Women. Gah! Women who are manipulative little skanks, and then the women who don't know any better! They're all a mess! And to think you were actually going to tell her-_

Does that matter? Why would Kasumi tell her something like that?

_Why do you think? She's a lying little minx. What should we expect from a cat demon?_

Well, I was thinking more along the lines of what drove her to do that.

_Other than her nature? She doesn't trust people like me, and I believe, by extension, you. She doesn't want her host to get hurt, is what I think, she's using to justify it. Can you believe how presumptuous that is?? _

I was quiet in response for a moment. Youko. I think we should go talk to Kasumi. That seems to be the only way to solve this.

_Solve this? Oh there are a couple ways that I would like to solve this. In short, I think it'd be easiest to just cuff the girl to the nearest horizontal object and knock some sense into her._

Youko!

_What? She needs it!_

I don't think that's the only reason. You're sweet on her.

_Where did you pick up that?_

Well, Yusuke nad Kuwabara have been around a lot.

_I think Saiko is where you picked that up. _

Regardless of where…are you?

_Are you on Kassie?_

No comment from either. For only a moment. _In any case, how do you know Kasumi will be out?_

Kasumi mentioned that she has Kassie take switchative before she sleeps. I thought that was fair.

_Fair? Then how come I don't get switchative every night? _

Because you aren't as trustworthy.

_And that witch is??_

Point taken.

_Which reminds me... Is Koenma still working on nullifying the switchative? _

Yes, he is. He said he's close too. Now, about Kasumi…

The fox put a fist into one hand with a smack. _I'll talk to her. She'll just blow you off. _

Regrettably it was true. I finally stood, and headed toward the cupboard with my store of switchative. A gulp later, the silver mist shrouded the room, and then I was gone, and the kitsune stood in my place

--

_I glanced at the clock. Nearly one in the morning Surely, the woman would be asleep by now. All the better. Easier to beat her upside the head when she was asleep to start with. Devious? Sure. Did I care? Not in the least. _

_I crept up the stairs as quiet as I could be in my tameless fury. Kasumi had gone too far. Turning me down,. I could accept that. Kind of. Not well, but I could handle it. Interfering with Shuuichi and Kassie was uncalled for! After all the work we'd put into getting those too on more intimate terms, she ruins it with a total lie! I had words for her._

Now…Now, don't go too far.

_Too far? –SHE- went too far, okay? I won't surpass her. I don't think._

That's not very comforting.

_In any case, I was too mad to stop. I opened her door silently and strolled over to the window bed. Empty. The day bed was empty too. Where was she? There was a light in the bathroom. I slipped in there, opening the door with total silence. There she was, brushing out her hair, a wicked grin on her features. As if she had a plan. A plot. She didn't even realize he was here, even when he showed up in the mirror. His pale hands had already locked on her shoulders before she started with a groan._

"_Give it up, Youko." She said with a grin that seemed unfazed. She actually went back to brushing her hair. "Whatever you're after, you aren't getting it."_

_My grip tightened on the soft flesh of her shoulders. Demonic women could be very pretty, or very scary. Kasumi fell into the former category for sure. And her choice of apparel only highlighted her curves. "I'm after you…"_

"_Well of course, I knew that. What else would you be after."_

_She turned amethyst eyes in the mirrors to meet his downturned golden ones. He chuckled a little. "…I'm after you to stop telling lies to impressionable young humans." _

_Kasumi looked a little surprised. "What lies?"_

"_About Shuuichi's feelings for your lovely young host."_

"_Where is the lie in that? I'm saving her from heartache." She tensed beneath my grip. It was easy to tell. Gracefully my thumb traced the edge of her shoulder. If I unnerved her enough… _

"_Heartache? Why, because you were burned, you think she'll be too?"_

"_I know she will be. And just because Shuuichi is human, he's still got you, and therefore he can't be trusted."_

_I looked at her shocked. "I can't be trusted?"_

_She ran with that, wriggling her shoulders, trying to free them from my hands. Unsuccessfully. "Of course not. You're a kitsune. You're seductive, and manipulative. You're trying to throw me off with your gentle touch. Get me to concede. I'll protect Kassie as I see fit. If that means making her think Shuuichi hates her, I will go there." Now my grip had to be painful. She cringed a little, face contorting temporarily in a hiss. "Let go of me, Bandit."_

"_Only when you stop telling lies." _

"_You idiot. Let me go now! Or face the consequences…"_

_Consequences? How did she intend to inflict those? "Kasumi. You're hurting Kassie more than your saving her."_

"_Then tell her I'm lying." He growled, sharp nails digging in. _

"_She won't believe me. Or Shuuichi."_

_She chukled. "Exactly…" One graceful but deadly hand touched his, and the touch surprised him into releasing her shoulder. It hadn't been a threatening touch but a loving gentle one like they had once shared. "I'll save her from heartache yet. And nothing you can say will stop me."_

_My hands clenched into fists. _

"_You'll have to prove to her that you two aren't passively friends, and that you aren't going to hurt her. Good luck with that. Now go. I'm going to change and you have no business here while I do that."_

_I growl a little, grasping her tail hard in my hands, thought gently playing with the tip to ease the pain. "For now, Kasumi. For now. We will prove you wrong. -I- will prove you wrong. And when I do…" I released her tail, stroking her cheek softly, and giving her hair a lingering pet. _

_And then I left. Just walked out. Not too far of course. I slipped into Sen's room. The monkey boy was sleeping like a log. Kasumi was going somewhere. And I was going to follow her there. Time to get down to the bottom of what was going on. Did I trust her? Nope. Who would after all this?_

_About half an hour later, I heard the bathroom door open, and the nthe swish of curtains. That was when I moved back toward her room. I couldn't hear anything… that was odd. When I finally opened the curtains, there was no one, only a slightly open window. We'd be checking the tapes again, but first…I saw her figure on the sidewalk across the street, making a beeline in a certain direction. Putting the curtains back where I found them, I slipped out of her room again. I would follow her. And boy, she better have a good excuse. _

_--_

_What I found surprised me. Kasumi made right for a night club. And one with a suitably dark aura about it. Partially demonic, but mostly…vampyric. Kasumi was associating with leeches? That would explain why she didn't worry about steering Kassie into that dark alley. At least that had backfired. My fur stood on end as I picked the lock on the door and slipped in. Kasumi was lying down on a couch, idly chatting with a tall dark… he seemed familiar. I'd only caught a flash of him in that alley, but I was certain, after a few moments, this was the man who'd caught Kassie in the alley. _

"_Alright, Kasumi. I've been holding off all day."_

"_Fine, Fine, hold your horses. She'll be out in a second. I still can't believe how much you enjoy her."_

_The man chuckled, his lithe frame shaking with the sound, and with his anticipation. "You never could appreciate good vitae, Godmother." Godmother? "She tastes sweet and tangy at once, so light I think if I would let it, it could float. Potent, thankfully. I don't have to take much at all. In fact, if I took too much, it would be possible I could actually get intoxicated."_

_The traitor actually looked surprised. "I had no idea one could alter a human's blood so much and so well just by co-inhabiting, Adrian. Perhaps it's a good thing you don't get much."_

_The man, Adrian apparently chuckled darkly as he watched her pull out the vial of switchative. "Indeed. If I got drunk, who knows what I might do. I might just keep little Kassie here with me permanently."_

_Kasumi waved a finger at him. "You wouldn't dare. You'd bring the whole Reikai down on your head, because of her sitters."_

_Adrian waved it off. "Of course…of course…" He didn't seem convinced. Never the less, Kasumi was taking a sip of that opaque liquid that held them enslaved. The next thing seen was a really limp Kassandra. Limp? What? Oh…she was asleep. _

_Shuuichi was freaking out. Insisting that I charge in there and save her now. This was very disconcerting for him. Especially when the man leaned down, and pressed his mouth to Kassie's throat. I had never seen Shuuichi so stressed. Or so angry. And I meant that. The man seemed to be taking great pleasure in__his task, even unnecessarily stroking her cheek, and holding her hands. Perhaps that was what really was infuriating my human. _

I can't believe Kasumi would do this! Bartering Kassandra for what? Shelter from us? How is this man going to protect her. _Now he was pacing in something I might call fury._ If she gets hurt…

_Well, she is still sleeping. _

_Imagine that. She's a meal to a vampire and she's still sleeping. Geez, that girl would really sleep through anything. _

_The idiot vampire finally pulled away. I could see even from my hiding place that he took his time cleaning the wound. It would heal, and we all knew it. Tomorrow, it wouldn't be there… would it? I made a note to check. Adrian, I assumed was supposed to put some more switchative in, and reverse it, but he hesitated. I was about ready to spring to the rescue,as cliché as that sounds, when it was a grinning Kasumi instead of a out cold Kassie on the couch. Apparently, he'd gotten around to it. I settled deeper into my hiding place. _

_Some time later, Kasumi walked over to the rail and peered down. Adrian followed._

"_So, Adrian, how is your new barkeep coming along?"_

"_Oh? The girl? She's fine. She knows her stuff, shows up on time, cleans up after herself, and keeps her mouth shut. Unfortunately, she also keeps to herself." _

_Kasumi laughed at him. "Unfortuantely for you, Good show for her."_

_He pouted. "Oh come now. If I wanted to, even you would fall for my charms. I don't understand why she is able to resist." He even tried to envelop Kasumi in his arms, only to find himself gracefully avoided. _

"_I can, so why couldn't she?"_

"_Because you are a sourpuss."_

"_No, I'm just wary now. Fool me once, shame on you..Fool me twice, or, more than that… shame on me. I'm not letting it happen again. That girl down there probably has a good reason for shrugging you off. Let her be."_

_There was a low hiss. I wasn't sure who it came from. "Don't tell me what to do, Kasumi Raiyami. I'm dangerous when provoked." Kasumi laughed in response. A light sound. Careless, and reckless. _

"_As. Am. I."And then she trounced out of the room, leaving a fairly furious vampire in her wake. I glanced down to the floor, watching the same barkeep Kasumi had been watching , assuming that was the one they were talking about. Odd looking thing. Something seemed off. Something also seemed very familiar. In an odd way. The aura was familiar, but not the face. And it was only half familiar. Veeeery odd. _

_Who was that she was talking to? I look a little closer, pointing the figure out to my poor stressed out human. It appeared she was talking to…Teleia-sensei? Why would she be talking to the Parenting class teacher. She didn't go to Meiou. A better question would be what's her reasoning for being here at a closed club, chatting with the barkeep. Very odd. _

_I slipped out of the rafters and back out the way I came in- unnoticed. Much to think about, and much to try to prove. I knew Kasumi got out of the house, but why didn't we catch her on tape?? Tomorrow would be fun…Damage Control. _


	12. Morning Woes

**My apologies… ;; I lost track again. I had to go reread the entire fic. And, I'm probably going to go back and rewrite it…to…you know…be better. I need a beta. Any volunteers? It'd also be your responsibility to make me update more regularly…;;**

**Purple (Emma)- its unlikely the amount that Adrian is taking would kill her. But, there can be some effects if enough time isn't given between drainings. Demonic properties help that blood regenerate faster. The best of luck goes to Youko from my heart too, but I'm really not sure if I'm ready for issues to be resolved yet…;;**

**As a preview, here is a list of things you can expect to happen in the future; Hopefully near; **

**-A visit from Karasu. (Yes. I'm serious. Karasu lovers will have a bit of love and affection, while the haters are going to either A) hate him even more B) toss their cookies or C) Go into something of a shocked coma.**

**-Kassie's elusive bits of past (That wild stage, perhaps even Zack, if I get around to it.) will be revealed.**

**-Karaoke!!!!**

**-And, last, and possibly least, (if only you knew) What exactly is Sam? **

Why did I feel ridiculously ill? The alarm went off in the form of a monkey bounding across my room, hanging from my ceiling. Vaguely I was reminded of when Kasumi first came out, and Yusuke said that Kasumi had hung from the ceiling by her tail. He'd been trying to figure out exactly what it was she had latched onto. I was wondering the same thing now, except in this case, it was about Sen.

Even when your bed is nestled into the wall, it is pretty much impossible to sleep through a screaming monkey. Not even –I- am that hardy when it come to sleeping. And I've slept through a hurricane before. To my credit, at least I realized right now was a really bad time to wake up. I felt like I hadn't slept at all. You know that weak feeling you get when you are utterly exhausted? That's what it felt like. It took me a while to realize it was just that I felt sick. Same thing. Something about being sick is exhausting.

To my credit, at least I tried to roll over and go back to sleep. But like I said. Annoying monkey, hanging from… something… on my ceiling.

Only in this house.

Finally, when he practically landed on me (How on earth was he supposed to get inside anyway. I mean, honestly, what kind of trajectory would you need. You'd have to have exactly the right angle in order to land inside my bed. It's in the WALL! He did though. Actually, he hit the curtains, bounced off with a dull thunk and then scrambled up to open the curtains with more chattering.

I threw my pillow at him.

Seriously, what did you expect me to do? A monkey opened my curtain, stuck his face in and chattered at me like some possessed creature. I wasn't feeling well, and I was TIRED! So I threw the pillow at him. It seemed like a good idea. Sen flew across the room, tiny monkey frame colliding into the wall with splurge of feathers and an angry shriek. When the cloud settled down, Sen was laying against the wall, dazed, but alive.

And apparently, not happy.

Ooops.

"I was just trying to wake you up Kass… you don't have to practically kill me…" Was Sen always this whiny, or had I just discovered this?

"…Sorry…" I looked at him for a moment, and then rolled over. I could still go back to sleep. It wasn't too late. Apparently, Sen had other ideas. He actually grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the bed. Now it was my turn to whine and complain. "Lemmmmmeeeee go… I don't waaaant to wake up…" I couldn't stand very well. That certainly didn't make being pulled across the hall any easier.

Lounging in his room, was something that jolted me awake. Any hope of falling asleep again was shattered when my heart started pounding, and I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Looking as perfect as usual, Kurama was lounging on Sen's bed. Normally, this would be a cause for alarm. He hadn't spent the night here, right? There was no way that Kurama was… no, I knew he wasn't. He just didn't like me.

"Whats… going on?" I felt cold. That wasn't' a good thing. I was definitely nervous now too. I wanted a wall to my back, as bad as that was. I really hadn't learned my lesson there, now had I? Instead, I was perfectly still. Sen found himself a hammock in the corner and hovered there, waiting for something. For whatever was going to happen here. Which, I still had no idea what. Kurama closed those lovely emerald eyes and sighed.

This wasn't a good sign, but why was he doing this here, and not with everyone else? "Kasumi did something, didn't she?"

_I love how you jump to it being MY fault, Kassie. _

To my surprise (or not really) he nodded. "She has been smuggling out at night." He seemed to be holding back, but immediately, I was covering my ears, and bent over. Kasumi was throwing a fit now, yelling at someone who couldn't hear, and making me miserable in the process. It was distracting. I couldn't hear my own thoughts, only Kasumi's rant.

"Kassie, focus on my voice." Why was it so easy to do that? I nod a little, and try to focus. "Tonight, you cannot let Kasumi out. She's been selling you out for a place to stay away from the house. I… will not go into details for your sake." I still couldn't make her shut up. My sinuses were getting overcome. I think I felt like there was some kind of migraine coming on. She was starting to get even louder now. I felt so lost, and overwhelmed. I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I was able to open my eyes. I was able to focus on that instead, for better or for worse. Kasumi's voice got quieter and quieter as the panic passed- in both of us.

"…Why are we in Sen's room? Haven't you told everyone else?"

Silence. Had I actually spoken or… "I don't see the need to alert them just yet. We will get this under control." Apparently, I had…

_Augh! I cannot understand why he has to get involved. He can have ANY girl, why can't he just leave me and mine, alone! Persistent kitsune… Blasted mortal males getting involved. And the immortal ones are worse! _

Kasumi. Please. Just be quiet. "I'm sorry to have made Sen wake you. I wanted to speak to you before the others were awake to avoid being overheard. As much as Hiei might distrust Sen, I feel he was the best to tell. Hiei would be in favor of locking you in the basement. Or even a more extreme option."

Lovely. Just looovely. I already don't feel good, and all this. I felt a bed coming up beneath me and accepted it gratefully. Silence fell again. I've mentioned how much I hate silence, right? Right. So for this, I wasn't sure if it was helping my migraine or making it ten times worse. "Do you feel alright?" Once more, that level headed voice was pushing through my consciousness, distracting me from, well, dying in my own self pity.

"No. I feel sick. Again." The day before Kasumi had emerged, I had felt ridiculously ill- before becoming ridiculously hyper the next day. Scary enough for you? He didn't seem surprised though. It seemed as if he was going to have something else to say, but a loud crash from downstairs pretty much, once again, shattered the possibility of continuing the conversation. I jumped to my feet and dashed to the stairs, hurrying down. My head was swimming, but I had to get out of there. Right then. No waiting.

_____

It was several minutes before Kurama arrived downstairs. I'd essentially calmed down by then, and was chatting civily with Sam. Surprisingly, Sam was returning the favor. It wasn't often Sam even had the capacity to speak without scaring people. She just always seemed to disturb people, usually without trying.

"So…yeah… I'm going to get those pictures for you, Sam. … … What do you need those for again?" The demon of unknown origin shifted a little bit.

"Curiosity…." I was putting forth the utmost effort to keep calm, and to not be so entirely aware of Kurama's presence. It was more difficult than one might think. Or, maybe you all do understand.

_Kassie, dear, just keep focused on the fact he's just your friend. Most fangirls don't even get that much! Enjoy what you get… _

I hated it when she had a point. I pulled my thoughts back on track. "I'll get the pictures then…today… If I can survive my classes…"

Sam's eyes began glowing with excitement, as she began giggling. "Yeah, I saw what happened in the gym. It was hilarious." I groaned, throwing my arms over the table and burying my head in my hands. She was joking right? I didn't ever want to remember that…Wait…how did Sam…

I jumped up, glaring at the girl in front of me. "How do YOU know about that? No one here saw that!"" Same simply began giggling before the answer slid out in bursts of lucidity.

"Oh… I was…watching…from school… It was…. HEHEHEH…. sooooo classic Kassie…" Unfortunately, her outburst drew the attention of Yusuke and Kuwabara, as well as drawing the eyes of Hiei and Kurama, their notice a lot quieter and subtle but still there. Silently, I looked at her, begging her not to tell the embarrassment of dodgeball madness, but… Since when had Sam ever avoided madness?

"You guys should have seen it! She opened the gym doors and BAM! RIGHT IN THE FACE! That idiot teacher was throwing dodgeballs at entering students! The person who decided that HE got to be a teacher ought to be drawn and quartered…Oh wait, he'd enjoy that…never mind… er…point being… that little triplet helped her up and then they ran laps. Or rather, she ran, the others just loped casually. And then, HE MADE THEM PLAY DODGBALL!!! And then, the girl, not Kassie obviously, cheated, and HE dinged her…But that's not the best part! Then it was only Kassie! And all the boys threw stuff at her, and none of it hit her. And then she threw all the balls at them, and then the boys threw them back, and it knocked her not only out but DOWN. It was the most epic dodgeball game I've ever WATCHED!. And…. I've seen people play some pretty epic dodgeball."

If I could have crawled into a hole and disappeared? I totally would have. And not come out ever. Yusuke and Kuwabara were laughing their shoes off, Hiei was chuckling darkly while slipping up behind Sam, his hand resting on her shoulder, and finally driving her to shut her trap and just look up at him a grin on her features. Kurama was laughing too. Ugh, this was already a bad day. And I haven't even showered yet..Or had I… I couldn't REMEMBER!

My headache was back, and now, I simply just groaned. Part of it was from embarrassment, the rest was from the slicing pain that was starting to pulse through my head.

"Maybe I shouldn't go to school today.." Just the thought was making my stomach turn. But it was almost one of those excited turns. That roller coaster turn. That- OMIGOSH! Whose hand is on my shoulder. As. If. I. Didn't. Already. Know. I jerked suddenly upright, staring at Kurama with a confused and lost expression. "… …Yes?"

"Let me look over you. Saiko would probably be a better choice, but I have picked up a few diagnostic skills."

_What is he playing at… _

I watch him, confused and wary. I was still trying to figure out how to kill my crush so I could think straight, and the last thing I wanted to do was let him be looking over me… "F-Fine…" Yeah, I still…couldn't really say no to him. Well, I could. The words could come out, but there was absolutely no force behind them. Unless there was fear. Fear was a good force for that. Like when I'd told him I couldn't jump off a thirty foot platform. Okay, so maybe it wasn't thirty feet. It was more like ten or fifteen… Okay, so, I don't really remember. Point being, now? I couldn't tell him no, no matter how much better it was for my health. Or…would it really be better for my health to turn him…. Oh I was just…really lost.

…_You… really ought to get a spine sometime Kassie. _

Thanks, it really is wonderful to hear you say that. How about something constructive this time?

_Stick with me, dearie. I'll teach you everything a female ought to know. How to tell the most attractive of men, no. And honestly? Kurama is only average. Or slightly above… _

Now you are just lying.

_Am I?_ Kasumi purred back. _Wouldn't you like to know dear… now… Oh WHAT is he doing? _

Was it me, or did I space out more when I spoke with Kasumi? A hand was on my temple, tilting my head to one side. Another hand came into contact, this time brushing long ordinary dishwater blonde hair over my shoulder and peering at my neck. I was surprised he didn't check the other side. He did check the temple on the other side, though I had no CLUE what he was looking for. The last thing, the most nerve rattling of all, was when his finger crooked ever so slightly under my chin, and tilted my head up to inspect the from beneath. It was just… so… I could feel a bit of fire on my cheeks, and knew I was blushing. His eyes were just so focused on my throat… …. WHY?

Kasumi fell far too silent for my tastes, but finally I he straightened up, though my head remained slightly pointed upward, resting on his finger still. The eyes met mine again and it was just…way too easy to get caught up in those emerald pooles. I couldn't breathe… Drat it, he ALWAYS did this to me. This time, however, Kasumi's yowl pierced through the haze and I jerked away suddenly, jamming my eyes shut.

"Did…you figure out what…the problem was?"

He was quiet for a moment, and I fancied I still felt his eyes watching me, but I wasn't looking to prove it. "I have some ideas… For now, I left a vial of analgesic on your day bed. Thirteen drops, will last you for three days. Do not take anymore than that… The effects… could be dangerous. " That was all I needed to hear.

"...I need to get ready for school…" It wasn't the most innovative excuse, but it was valid, and it worked well enough with the subject matter. I was upstairs as fast as I could manage, and sure enough, sitting there was a vial and a little cup, with a small folded paper note next to it. A note I didn't have the courage to open, but my fingers caught it up anyway unbidden. I picked up the vial, which smelled strongly of mint. Thirteen drops, eh? A dropper slid out of the note, and I gulped as I picked it up. Carefully I counted the drops panicked about making a mistake. Thirteen. I set the dropper aside, and picked up the sharp green liquid.

_You trust him, don't you?_

…Yes? No, I wasn't even sure I knew why it came out that way. But I did know, that scent was powerful, and definitely everywhere it seemed, wrapping around my mind like a soft numbing blanket… I hurriedly put the cup down.

_Ah, but you question it anyway… Do you REALLY trust him? _

… Didn't I already answer that…? I had answered that, hadn't I?

_Rule # 1 about staying alive in a dangerous world, Kassie. Don't trust anyone. _

I think I know rule number two…

_Oh? What is it? _It was obvious she didn't put any stock in my answer. But that's okay, it wasn't really serious…I didn't… think….

Just to bother her, I scooped up the little cup and downed it in one gulp, the mint burning a peaceful, soothing trail all the way down, shooting this thought out at the same time.

Don't call me Kassie.

**Next Chapter: **

**.... Officially blowing Kassie/Kurama relationship to the Makai. **

**.... Officially taking the first few steps to repairing said relationship. **

**.... More of those fun-fun teachers. 33 **

**.... A surprise failure**

**.... A surprise romance**

**.... and more~! **


End file.
